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Searching the Index Fungorum database

Searching the Index Fungorum database, and the other databases on this site, works best if you have ‘cookies’ enabled on your browser. Disabling cookies will stop you from navigating between pages of records and traversing the taxonomic hierarchy.

Search for publication and other details of a fungus name by entering either the name or the epithet (both specific and infraspecific epithets are searched together). Your entry can be right-truncated (do not add a * or % to the end of the search string - we will do that for you), e.g. ‘Agaricus am’ will find all names within the genus ‘Agaricus’, where the first two letters of the epithet start with ‘am’.

The database search restricts you to 6000 records so if you enter something as vague as ‘A’ you will not get all the records – try and be a bit more specific. The restriction is sufficient to return all records for the largest genus (Lecidea), if you really want to scroll through 30 pages of results, or the most common epithet. Please be kind to our server and be specific, literally!

Click on an entry to see more data. Full publication details are provided for some entries from CABI ’s Index of Fungi.

Entries with ‘[GSD]’ or ‘[RSD]’ have onward links to Global Species Databases (part of Species Fungorum) or Regional Species Databases and full synonymy data.

For most entries the taxonomic hierarchy attached to a name is either derived from the nomenclatural position of the genus through its type (thus Helotium appears in the Tricholomataceae because the type of Helotium is a basidiomycete), or in some cases through the presumed position based on an assesment of associated homotypic names. Only in GSD data, or other data for which a taxonomic opinion is available (and which contribute to the Catalogue of Life), is the correct taxonomic position of a name known through the position of the currently accepted name.

The database has been derived from a number of published lists including Saccardo’s Sylloge Fungorum, Petrak’s Lists, Saccardo’s Omissions, Lamb’s Index, Zahlbruckner’s Catalogue of Lichens (comprehensive for names at species level only but with an increasing number of names of infraspecific taxa) and the Index of Fungi. A name record will usually have a reference to an entry in one or more of these published lists in addition to other data derived from numerous acknowledged sources. Author citations conform with the Brummitt & Powell standard (now searchable on-line here or through IPNI), or are indicated '{?}' thus.

If the name you are looking for is missing and you have basic data (authors, literature reference) click here to make an addition.

Please note: you must have an Index Fungorum user account to add a missing name and be logged in. Don't have an account yet? Create an account. Already have an account? Log in.

Registering a new name

The IF registration is separate from the IF publishing system. When you register names (names of new taxa, new combinations, new names) or typifications the email address you use to obtain the indentifier also identifies these names/typifications as ‘yours’.

If you wish to add a name that is already published, but missing from Index Fungorum, please use the add missing name form.

You must have an Index Fungorum user account to register names/typifications and be logged in. Don't have an account yet? Create an account. Already have an account? Log in.

After you register names/typifications you will be emailed an Index Fungorum identifier which should be cited in the protologue. Names will be reviewed before they become visible in search results. If no publication details are provided, the name will not be released. If the manuscript is 'in-press' or currently published on-line only follow the relevant instructions available from the registration page. When registering names/typifications the bibliographic details required are those where you intend to publish the names/typifications you are registering, NOT the basionym reference, or the replaced synonym reference or, for typification, the reference to the name you are typifying – all these details are already available in Index Fungorum and will be retrieved during the pre-publication review. If they are not present the relevant records should be updated before publishing.

Registration form fields

Form box

Help notes

Name

Enter the name, including any infraspecific or infrageneric rank term, but EXCLUDING any author citations

Rank

Select a rank if the form deals with more than one rank

Author

Enter the full author citation, including basionym authors, just as you would in manuscript preparation

Publishing Authors

Enter the author(s) of the publication in which the name will be published ONLY if this differs from the name authors entered above

Journal or Book

Either select from the list (the journals listed are those which publish the largest number of names) or select 'Other', which can be found at the bottom of the list. This will provide you with a box where you can enter the name of a publication not found on the list.

Volume

The journal or book volume number

Part

The part number if the volume is split; IF policy is to add 'no.' if the pagination is non sequential (i.e. each part starts with page 1)

Page

The single page on which the name being registered will be published; this field is mandatory so if unknown use '1'

Year of publication

This is the year that the name will be effectively published; if unknown use the current year

Year on publication

This is the year printed on the journal or book ONLY if it differs from the one above

Host/Associated organism/ecosystem

This is not mandatory but useful information for taxonomists; keep the information concise

Location

This is not mandatory but useful information for taxonomists; select from the list of TDWG Geographical Recording System areas or an ISO country

Basionym

Look up the name of the basionym in the pop-up window but only enter the IF number

Replaced synonym

Look up the name of the replaced synonyms (the illegitimate name, epithet bringing name or unavailable name) in the pop-up window but only enter the IF number

Competing synonym

Look up the name of the competing synonym in the pop-up window but only enter the IF number

Typification details

Include only the Code required data - the Index Herbariorum acronym or Institution or Reference Collection name where the type will be preserved + the accession number or the collector and the collection number/date. For new genera register the genus first then the type species

Diagnosis

Include either a diagnosis (preferred) OR the full description, in Latin or English (maximum 3000 characters)

Notes

Add any notes (these are not visible) which might be useful to explain things, for example, etymology