NAME Penicillium curtipes
AGE (Berkeley) Eocene; (Meschinelli): Oligocene.   AGE span: 55.8...23.03 mya
K&J CLASSIFICATION (2000) Ascomycetes, Eurotiales.
FIGURE(S)
Image of
Pl.31fig.4.jpg
FIGURE REFERENCE Berkeley MJ. 1848. On three species of mould detected by Dr. Thomas in the amber of East Prussia; Annals and Magazine of Natural History, v. 2, p. 380-383.
SPECIES, AUTHORITY P. curtipes Berkeley 1848, p. 381, pl. 11, fig. 1 (re-illustrated in Hirmer, 1927, p. 116).
LOCATION (Berkeley) East Prussia; (Meschinelli): Europe.
ORIG DESCRIPTION* Hyphasma shining white, sparing, loosely branched and mostly at right angles, giving off extremely short flocci, consisting of from three to four articulations which are slightly constricted at the dissepiments, and divided above into two or three threads which are again loosely branched; lower articulations oblong-elliptic, larger, the upper ones gradually smaller, but always elliptic and quite smooth.

(Meschinelli 1892, p. 789): Mycelium shining white, sparing; growing subhorizontally, loosely branched, hyphae divided and consisting of 4 articulations or joints. Conidia elliptical, 2.5-2 µm [sic].
COMMENTS* This species, which is almost admirably preserved, is most nearly allied to Penicillium sparsum, Lk. (Aspergillus penicillatus Grev., Monilia penicillata Fr.), but differs in its shorter stems and more diffuse tufts of fructifying threads. It is to be observed that Fries's characters of the genus Penicillium appear to be taken either from Nees von Esenbeck's figure or from Dr. Greville's plate of P. glaucum and P. sparsum, both of which are incorrect, the true structure of the genus being that which has been repeatedly figured by Corda, and which exactly accords with the pretty species before us, as it does with Aspergillus penicillatus Grev.
PUBLICATION REFERENCE Berkeley MJ. 1848. On three species of mould detected by Dr. Thomas in the amber of East Prussia; Annals and Magazine of Natural History, v. 2, p. 380-383.

Meschinelli A. 1902. Fungorum fossilium omnium Iconographia; In Aedibus J. Galla, Vicetiae, 144 p.
K&J REMARKS Berkeley (1848) described this fossil species from the amber of East Prussia under the extant genus Penicillium Link 1809 ex Fries 1832. Berkeley also provided a brief Latin diagnosis, the contents of which are included in the longer and more informative English description here cited.

Meschinelli (1892) gave the generic name as Penicillites, by using the suffix -ites, solely to show the fossil origin of the only assigned species; he gave the name of the latter as the new combination Penicillites curtipes (Link) Meschinelli 1892. Both these names are nomina nuda.
TYPE
ALL NAMES (Including synonyms) Penicillium curtipes
SERIAL NUMBER 1281
PUBLIC COMMENTS
 *For source, see Publication Reference.