Pisolithus arhizus is a widespread earth-ball like fungus, which may in fact be several closely related species. Common names include dead man's foot and dyeball. It is known in Australia as the horse dung fungus, in South Africa as perdebal, and in Europe as the Bohemian truffle. This puffball's black viscous gel is used as a natural dye for clothes. Pisolithus arhizus is a major component in mycorrhizal fungus mixtures that are used in gardening as powerful root stimulators. It is inedible. The fruiting body is 5–30 cm tall and 4–20 cm wide, with a thin yellow-brown to brown exterior layer. The spores are brown. Dictyocephalos attenuatus is similar.
No narrative description available for this taxon yet.
Compounds documented for Pisolithus arhizus across natural-product and food-composition databases — not just the ~150 nutrients on a classic label ("nutritional dark matter").
Compound class profile5 classes
Plant xanthones31
Lanostane, Tirucallane and Euphane triterpenoids18
A DNA barcode is a short, standardised stretch of genes that works like a fingerprint — enough to tell one species from another. Below is the molecular trace Pisolithus arhizus has left across the world's sequence archives.
At a glance
DNA specimens18
Marker genes2
GenBank sequences10
eDNA detections2 536
Countries11
The DNA barcodea real sequence read deposited for this species
★ the standard DNA barcode for this group — the short region actually read to tell this species apart. The rest are extra genes sequenced along the way.
★ITS10★ITS1
fungal barcode
06Genome at a glanceGoaT
The complete instruction manualPisolithus arhizus carries — its genome. We read it from three angles — how big it is, how the DNA is packed into chromosomes, and how completely it has been sequenced — and explain how to read each value as you go.
Genome sizehow big the whole instruction manual is
Genome size66 295 000 bp
Measured in base pairs (bp) — the individual letters of DNA (human ≈ 3.2 Gb, a bacterium a few million). The chart places this genome on a logarithmic scale — each step to the right is ten times bigger — among reference organisms. Across species a bigger genome loosely tracks with larger cells, slower growth and lower-energy lifestyles (powered flight favours small genomes) — yet it does not imply more genes or a more advanced organism (the long-standing C-value paradox).
BACTERIUM Carsonella ruddii0.00016 Gb
FUNGUS0.04 Gb
THIS GENOME Pisolithus arhizus0.07 Gb
INSECT0.25 Gb
HUMAN3.2 Gb
WHEAT17 Gb
FERN Tmesipteris160.45 Gb
08Occurrence & distribution
Record type5 505 records
Wild obs. + sensor3 036
Museum / vouchered2 377
Other92
Origin
Native79
Range
Area of Occupancy AOO12 152 km²
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
Coordinate accuracy77% within 1 km
≤100 m 1 240≤1 km 403≤10 km 302>10 km 180
2 125 georeferenced · 911 without coordinates
Open the mapobservation + sensor3 036
Museum / Voucheredphysical evidence
Backed by a physical specimen — a herbarium sheet, sample or voucher held in a collection. “Vouchered” means supported by material evidence, not just an observation.
Coordinate accuracy37% within 1 km
≤100 m 43≤1 km 74≤10 km 159>10 km 41
317 georeferenced · 2 060 without coordinates
Open the institutions mapphysical evidence2 377
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
10Collections & institutions
Holding institutions33 of 62 geolocated
Institutions and collections holding physical, vouchered specimens of this species — click a row to fly to it on the map.
Institution
Specimens
Museo Entomologico de Leonlocation not on record
91
Kensington, AU
79
BDBClocation not on record
57
Helsinki, FI
41
Palmerston, AU
28
DPIlocation not on record
25
National Biodiversity Institute, Costa Ricalocation not on record
22
Görlitz, DE
19
JA-CAGPDS-CAMlocation not on record
17
Durango, MX
17
WU-MYClocation not on record
14
San Sebastián, ES
12
Karlsruhe, DE
11
Philadelphia, US
10
MeiseBGlocation not on record
10
Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznańlocation not on record
10
Tartu, EE
10
Vitoria, ES
9
GJOlocation not on record
9
Canberra, AU
9
Ensenada, MX
9
MAlocation not on record
8
Córdoba, ES
7
Chicago, US
6
Salamanca, ES
5
LDlocation not on record
5
Bando, JP
5
Mérida, ES
5
SLU Artdatabankenlocation not on record
5
Olocation not on record
4
Copenhagen, DK
4
Toronto, CA
4
Uppsala, SE
3
Centro de Estudios Superiores del Estado de Sonoralocation not on record
3
Kew, GB
3
Stockholm, SE
3
Staten Island, US
2
Hobart, AU
2
Museo civico di Storia naturale Giacomo Doria di Genova | Giacomo Doria Natural History Museum in Genoalocation not on record
2
Davis and Elkins Collegelocation not on record
2
Kuopio, FI
1
Bardejov, SK
1
Jyväskylä, FI
1
nsnflocation not on record
1
BRNUlocation not on record
1
University of Oslo, Natural History Museumlocation not on record
1
INMAlocation not on record
1
Université de Montréal Biodiversity Centrelocation not on record
1
Universidad de los Llanos (UniLlanos)location not on record
1
Gijón, ES
1
Departamento de Sistematica e Ecologialocation not on record
1
Parkville, AU
1
Tomioka, JP
1
Toyota city nature sanctuarylocation not on record
1
Oulu, FI
1
Uniwersytet Łódzkilocation not on record
1
University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU)location not on record
1
Bronx, US
1
Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Nortelocation not on record
1
University of Tennessee at Chattanoogalocation not on record
1
Santa Barbara, US
1
Universidade Federale do Rio Grande do Sullocation not on record
1
62 institutions · 609 of 2 377 vouchered records shown · 1 767 without an institution code
09Environmental DNA2 536 detections
Where the DNA of Pisolithus arhizus was picked up in samples of water, soil or air — nobody saw the organism, only its DNA left behind. A trace is a clue that the species was near, not a confirmed sighting.
Signal
Detections DNA found2 536
Studies independent surveys8
Countries11
Verifiable raw sequence linked1
Signal confidence: moderateweighed across independent studies, places & mapped detections
Where its DNA was found
0 of 2 536 detections have coordinates
Open the map11 countries0
PalearcticNeotropic
How strong is each trace?
DNA read depthRead counts were not reported for this species — the map shows presence only, not how strong each trace was.
1 166 samples with on-site data · median with range · describes the sample, not the organism
Modelled climatemodelled
−15°Ctemperature across detection sites+40°C
Temperature median18.0 °C 12.4–25.4
Seasonal swing summer↔winter12.2 °C
Max temp (day)24.4 °C 16.4–31.1
Min temp (night)12.5 °C 7.60–19.9
Precipitation43.7 mm/mo 9.00–123
Air humidity53.9 % 45.2–59.7
Moisture balance-81.3 mm/mo -142–38.8
Vapour deficit978 Pa 590–1,596
Wind speed3.80 m/s 2.40–4.80
Cloud cover19.6 % 7.60–33.8
CHELSA 1981–2010, ~9 km grid, at location & month of 2 521 detection points · median with p10–p90 · reflects where sampling happened, not only the true niche
How to read this: each dot is one detection of this species' DNA in an environmental sample. The confidence meter weighs how many independent studies and places back up the signal — one detection in one study is a hint; many across several studies is solid. Records dated before 2008 (when eDNA methods began) are treated as likely mislabeled and left off the map.
WikipediaWikimedia Foundation9 languages↗
BioWikiNetmultilingual Wikipediamultilingual↗
GBIFGlobal Biodiversity Information Facility5 505 records↗
ENAEuropean Nucleotide Archive · EMBL-EBI2 536 eDNA detections↗
BOLD SystemsCentre for Biodiversity Genomics18 specimens↗
NCBIUS National Library of Medicinesequences↗
LOTUSNatural Products (Wikidata)compounds↗
NPASSNat. Product Activity & Species Sourcecompounds↗
Open Tree of LifeOpenTreephylogeny backbone↗
GoaTGenomes on a Tree · Sangergenome ~0.07 Gbp↗
Catalogue of LifeCOLtaxonomy↗
GLoBIGlobal Biotic Interactionsbiotic interactions↗