amber, and is smooth and glossy, changing to striate and slightly translucent towards the margin. The pileus margin is striated and slightly flared. The gills on the underside of the pileus are broadly attached (adnate) to the top of the stipe, and distantly spaced—between six and eight gills extend completely from the pileus margin to the stipe. These full-length gills are anastomosed with lamellulae (short gills which do not reach the edge of the stipe from the pileus margin) of varying lengths. The pileus is centered on the curved stipe, which is smooth and cylindrical, measuring thick by long. The stipe lacks a ring and rhizoids. The mushroom is preserved with a small liquid and gas-filled bubble, possibly originating from the mushroom itself, which indicates the amber to be very solid and well-sealed. In Hibbett and colleagues' 1997 publication, Protomycena was placed in the subfamily Myceneae, which at the time was considered part of the family Tricholomataceae; Mycena is currently classified in the family Mycenaceae. The placement was based solely on the visible structures, or macromorphology of the fruit body. Many of the features which are typically used to classify species into fungal families and subfamilies are based on microscopic features not visible or preserved in the amber specimen. Consequently, the assignment to Mycena is provisional (the authors also note certain similarities with extant members of Marasmius), and the describing authors leave open the option of treating the genus placement as incertae sedis (uncertain placement) within the Agaricales. Protomycena is distinct from other amber-preserved mushroom taxa such as Coprinites, in the grooved surface of its pileus and its anastomosing gills. References External links Botanical Society of America Image of amber specimen †Protomycena †Protomycena Prehistoric fungi Natural history of Hispaniola Fossil taxa described in 1997 Miocene life Natural history of the Dominican Republic Neogene fungi Monotypic Agaricales genera