The first studies of Amanita Pers. in Brazil were performed by J. Rick, who described seven taxa: Amanita spissa var. laeta Rick, A. spissa var. alba Rick, A. bresadolae (Rick) Rick non Schulzer (1885)Schulzer S. 1885. Einige neue Pilz-Species und Varietäten aus Slavonien. Hedwigia 24: 129-151., A. spissa Fr., A. strobiliformis, Amanitopsis plumbea Rick (Rick 1906Rick J. 1906. Pilze aus Rio Grande do Sul (Brazilien). Brotéria 5: 5-53., 1907Rick J. 1907. Contributio ad monographiam Agaricacearum et Polyporacearum Brasiliensium. Brotéria 6: 65-92., 1937Rick J. 1937. Agarici Riograndensis. I. Lilloa 1: 307-346., 1938Rick J. 1938. Agarici Riograndensis. II. Lilloa 2: 251-316., 1961Rick J. 1961. Basidiomycetes Eubasidii in Rio Grande do Sul-Brasilia. 5. Iheringia Botânica 8: 296-450.), and Collybia sulcatissima Rick (presumably an Amanita according to Singer 1953Singer R. 1953. Type studies on Basidiomycetes. VI. Lilloa 26: 57-159. and Bas 1978Bas C. 1978. Studies in Amanita. I. Some Amazonian species. Persoonia 10: 1-22.), all from Rio Grande do Sul. Most of these species were revised by Singer (1953)Singer R. 1953. Type studies on Basidiomycetes. VI. Lilloa 26: 57-159., Bas (1969Bas C. 1969. Morphology and subdivision of Amanita and a monograph on its section Lepidella. Persoonia 5: 285-579., 1978)Bas C. 1978. Studies in Amanita. I. Some Amazonian species. Persoonia 10: 1-22., and Bas & de Meijer (1993)Bas C. de Meijer A.A.R. 1993. Amanita grallipes, a new species in Amanita subsection Vittadiniae from Southern Brazil. Persoonia 15: 345-350., except for Amanita spissa var. laeta. Thus, the only authentic collection identified by Rick as Armillaria spissa var. laeta deposited at the PACA herbarium (Instituto Anchietano de Pesquisas) is selected as the neotype for Amanita spissa var. laeta.
Amanita spissa var. laeta Rick, Brotéria 5: 25. 1906Rick J. 1906. Pilze aus Rio Grande do Sul (Brazilien). Brotéria 5: 5-53.. MycoBank: MB 839010. Type: location and date not informed, J. Rick s.n. (neotype here designated: PACA 12239! as ‘Armillaria spissa?’). MycoBank typification number: MBT 10001457. Figs. 1, 2.
Basidioma apparently small to medium size, solitary, rather stout. Pileus: about 30-45 mm, apparently plano-convex; margin smooth, probably appendiculate; context apparently unchanging; universal veil as numerous sub-pyramidal warts up to 2 mm high. Lamellae: free (?), crowded; lamellulae not seen. Stipe: 28-36 × 4-8 mm (10 mm at apex), tapering downward; bulb absent; partial veil apical, thin-membranous, pendulous; universal veil scarce. Odor and taste not recorded. Basidiospores [30/2/1] (8.0-) 8.5-12 (-12.5) × (6.5-) 7.0-8.5 (-9.5) µm, (L = 9.5-9.6 µm, L’ = 9.5 µm; W = 7.7-7.8 µm, W’ = 7.8 µm; Q = (1.11-) 1.12-1.39 (-1.42); Q = 1.23, Qm = 1.23), amyloid, hyaline, colorless, broadly ellipsoid to ellipsoid and sometimes subglobose, smooth, thin-walled; apiculus sublateral to subapical; contents difficult to locate. Stipe context distinctly acrophysalidic, but difficult to rehydrate. Pileipellis not differentiated. Universal veil on pileus: common clavate, slender clavate, fusoid-ellipsoid to somewhat ovoid cells 60-95 × 23-37 µm, hyaline, apparently thin walled, plentiful, the terminal elements frequently submucronate, arising from filamentous hyphae or somewhat organized in loose chains with 2 (-3) cells; filamentous hyphae 4-10 µm, mostly colorless, common, clamped; vascular hyphae common, 10-15 µm wide, frequently dichotomously branched. On stipe: difficult to analyze. Partial veil: very weakly rehydrated with the inflated elements difficult to locate, but apparently c. 112 × 30 µm, slender clavate, moderately thick walled; filamentous hyphae plentiful 5 µm wide, interwoven; vascular hyphae up to 5 µm wide, occasional.
Habitat.-Unknown.
Typification.-Rick (1906)Rick J. 1906. Pilze aus Rio Grande do Sul (Brazilien). Brotéria 5: 5-53. described Amanita spissa var. laeta with “grayish isabelline (= grayish-light yellowish brown, Kelly & Judd 1976Kelly K.L. & Judd D.B. 1976. Color. Universal Language and Dictionary of Names. U.S. Department of Commerce, National Bureau of Standards, Washington.) pileus and squamules, a non-bulbous and widening upward stipe covered with concentric squamules, and bright yellow lamellae” (translated from German), but without mention of any putative voucher or type specimen. In this same work he also described A. spissa var. alba Rick with “white pileus on which the margin transpose the lamellae length, and lamellae extending on the stipe by lines”. Both were described as growing on soil, surrounded by the “normal forms”. Unfortunately no type specimen exists or was previously designed (Bas 1969: 561Bas C. 1969. Morphology and subdivision of Amanita and a monograph on its section Lepidella. Persoonia 5: 285-579.). The specimen selected only possesses annotations by Singer on the herbarium sheet as: ‘Amanita sp.’ Indeed, according Tulloss & Yang (2021)Tulloss R.E. & Yang Z.L. eds. 2021. Amanitaceae studies Website: http://www.amanitaceae.org?home [accessed: Apr. 4 2021]. the name applied here is obviously a misinterpretation of A. spissa (Fr.) P.Kumm. [= A. excelsa (Fr.) Bertill.]. Although the material is poorly preserved, it is the only existing material that can be assigned to this epithet. Thus, this study suggests that this exsiccate corresponds to a very similar one used in the protologue of A. spissa var. laeta, a valid name since the Latin diagnosis was not required prior 1 January 1935 (Turland & al. 2018Turland N.J., Wieresma J.H., Barrie F.R., Greuter W., Hawksworth D.L., Herendeen P.S., Knapp S., Kusber W.-H., Li D.-Z., Marhold K., May T.W., McNeill J., Monro A.M., Prado J., Price M.J. & Smith G.F. (eds.) 2018. International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (Shenzhen Code) adopted by the Nineteenth International Botanical Congress Shenzhen, China, July 2017. Regnum Vegetabile 159. Glashütten: Koeltz Botanical Books. , Art. 39.1). In addition, due the lack of any other specimen of A. spissa var. laeta, I select PACA 12239 as the neotype for that name.