Tulasnella

Tulasnella is a genus of effused (patch-forming) fungi in the order Cantharellales. Basidiocarps (fruit bodies), when visible, are typically smooth, ceraceous (waxy) to subgelatinous, frequently lilaceous to violet-grey, and formed on the underside of fallen branches and logs. They are microscopically distinct in having basidia with grossly swollen sterigmata (or epibasidia) on which basidiospores are formed. One atypical species, Tulasnella aurantiaca, produces orange to red, gelatinous, pustular anamorphs on wood. Some species form facultative mycorrhizas with orchids and liverworts. Around 80 species of Tulasnella are known worldwide.