Abstract

From 2000 to 2004, we studied wild edible mushrooms collected from forests of Yunnan pine (Pinus yunnanensis), a dominant vegetation in central Yunnan and adjacent regions. A total of 776 mushroom collections were obtained and identified, including 457 from the field investigation of the authors, 167 from mushroom markets, and 152 from specimens in the Herbarium of Cryptogams, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences. In total, 211 taxa belonging to 43 genera of 27 families were identified, among which 111 taxa in 35 genera of 23 families were commercial mushrooms traded in the local markets. Of these commercial mushrooms, 23.23% belonged to Russulaceae, comprising 15.17% (32 species) from the genus Russula and 8.06% (17 species) from the genus Lactarius. Boletaceae ranked the second in species richness and made up 19.43% (41 species) of the total species. Seventeen species found were from the family Tricholomataceae, 11 from Ramariaceae and Suillaceae, and 9 from Cantharellaceae, sharing 8.06%, 5.21%, 5.21% and 4.27% of the total species, respectively.More than 30 species from the genera Russula, Boletus, Lactarius, Ramaria, Suillus, Tricholoma, Cantharellus, and Thelephora made up 47.50% of the total wild commercial mushroom species in the Yunnan local markets. In recent years, increasing demand for wild edible mushrooms has resulted in large-scale commercial harvesting, which has led to a decline of mushroom species. We appeal for protecting these valuable fungal resources and their habitats.