The Luttrellian Concept: Introductory Remarks

Abstract

In his 1951 treatise Taxonomy of the Pyrenomycetes Luttrell wrote that the classification of the ascomycetes is a difficult taxonomic problem. Nevertheless, he undertook the analysis of ascomycete literature to that time with a focus on pyrenomycete systematics and with the intent of taxonomic revision. In doing so, he noted a shift in the emphasis from artificial criteria—such as the habitat or fruit body wall color and consistency—to more fundamental criteria—such as those derived from the ascus. In a contemporary mode, Luttrell (1951) revised the systematics of pyrenomycetous fungi, emphasizing the relationship between the ascus and other components of the ascocarp occupying the perithecial cavity, or locule, within which the asci develop. The resultant Luttrellian concept in fungal systematics can be described as an emphasis on the relationship between the ascus and the totality of ascocarp components.