Fungalpedia – Note 3182, Helicocephalum

 

Helicocephalum Thaxt., Botanical Gazette Crawfordsville 16: 201 (1891).

Citation when using this data: Jian Ma et al. 2024 – Fungalpedia.

Index Fungorum, Faceoffungi, MycoBank, GenBank, Fig 1.

Classification: Helicocephalidaceae, Zoopagales, Incertae sedis, Zoopagomycetes, Zoopagomycotina, Zoopagomycota, Fungi.

Notes: Helicocephalum was established by Thaxter (1891), and typified by H. sarcaphilum, which was isolated from carrion in Connecticut. Helicocephalum comprises eight species: H. africanum, H. corniculatum, H. diplosporum, H. megalosporum, H. oligosporum, H. ovalisporum, H. sarcophilum and H. tenellum, based on solitary or chains of conidia, and the height of conidiophores (Thaxter 1891; Drechsler 1934, 1943; Arnaud 1952; Krzemieniewska and Badura 1954; Goos et al. 1986; Kitz and Embree 1989; Roux 1996; Borowska 1997). Helicocephalum species are commonly found in decaying leaves, decaying spinach, dung and soil in America, France, Poland and South Africa (Thaxter 1891; Drechsler 1934, 1943; Arnaud 1952; Krzemieniewska and Badura 1954; Kitz and Embree 1989; Roux 1996; Borowska 1997). Helicocephalum is characterized by its erect, simple, aseptate conidiophores, and helicoid, hyaline to brown, thick-walled conidia that are segments separating, and constricted at the septa (Thaxter 1891). It is important to note that H. africanum and H. sarcophilum were cultured separately along with the bacteria and Coemansiella spiralis, on which they depend for survival (Thaxter 1891; Roux 1996).

Type species: Helicocephalum sarcophilum Thaxt., Botanical Gazette Crawfordsville 16: 201 (1891)

Other accepted species: Species Fungorum – search Helicocephalum.

Figure 1 – (a) Drepanoconis larviformis (redrawn from Piepenbring et al. (2010)), a Host cells with basidia and other fungal cells. b Mature basidiospores; (b) Helicocephalum sarcophilum (redrawn from Thaxter (1891)); (c) Helicomyxa everhartioides (redrawn from Seifert et al. (2011)).

 

References

Arnaud G. 1952 – Mycologie concrète: genera. Bulletin trimestriel de la Société mycologique de France 68:181–223.

Drechsler C. 1934 – A new species of Helicocephalum. Mycologia 26(1):33–37.

Drechsler C. 1943 – A new non-helicoid bisporous Helicocephalum parasitizing nematode eggs. Mycologia 35(2):134–141.

Goos R. 1986– A review of the anamorph genus Helicoma. Mycologia 78(5):744–761.

Kitz DJ, Embree RW. 1989 – A new species of Helicocephalum from Iowa. Mycologia 81(1):164–166.

Krzemieniewska H, Badura L. 1954 – Contribution to the knowledge of the microorganisms from the litter and soil of the beech-wood. Acta Societatis Botanicorum Poloniae 23(4):727–780.

Thaxter R. 1891 – On certain new or peculiar North American Hyphomycetes. II. Helicocephalum, Gonatorrhodiella, Desmidiospora nov. genera and Everhartia lignatilis n. sp. Botanical Gazette 16(7):201–205.

 

Entry by

Jian Ma, School of Food and Pharmaceutical Engineering, Guizhou Institute of Technology, Guiyang 550003, P.R. China, Center of Excellence in Fungal Research, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai 57100, Thailand, School of Science, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai, 57100, Thailand.

 

Published online 18 September 2026

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