Morchella tridentina
Fung. trident. 2(11-13): 65. 1892.
Common Name: morel
Synonym: Morchella frustrata M. Kuo
For description see Kuo et al., MushroomExpert.com & Richard et al.
Solitary to gregarious in montane mixed forests dominated by various trees, including madrone (Arbutus menziesii), oaks (Quercus spp.), Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), pines (Pinus spp.), and white firs (Abies concolor); April through June.
Edible and excellent. All morels should be well cooked.
Morchella tridentini can be distinguished by its pale colors (unusual for members of the Morchella elata clade), conical cap with vertically orientated pits, glabrous ridges, grooved attachment to the stipe, and lack of a lacunose stipe. Morchella snyderi is similar initially, but is typically larger, develops brown to black ridges as it matures, and has a lacunose (ridged and pocketed) stipe.
Bresadola, G. (1898). Fungi Tridentini. 2(11-13): 47-81. (Protologue)
Kuo, M., Dewsbury, D.R., O'Donnell, K., Carter, M.C., Rehner, S.A., Moore, J.D., Moncalvo, J.-M. , Canfield, S.A., Stephenson, S.L., Methven, A.S. & Volk, T.J. (2012). Taxonomic revision of true morels (Morchella) in Canada and the United States. Mycologia 104(5): 1159-1177. (PDF)
Loizides, M., Alvarado, P., Clowez, P., Moreau, P.-A., de la Osa, L. & Palazón, A. (2015). Morchella tridentina, M. rufobrunnea, and M. kakiicolor: a study of three poorly known Mediterranean morels, with nomenclatural updates in section Distantes. Mycol Progress 14(3): 1-18. (PDF)
Pilz, D., McLain, R., Alexander, S., Villarreal-Ruiz, L., Berch, S.M., Wurtz, T.L., Parks, C.G., McFarlane, E., Baker, B., Molina, R. & Smith, J.E. (2007). Ecology and Management of Morels Harvested from the Forests of Western North America. Pacific Northwest Research Station, Forest Service, USDA: Portland, OR. 161 p. (PDF)
Richard, F., Bellanger, J.-M., Clowez, P., Hansen, K., O’Donnell, K., Urban, A., Sauve, M., Courtecuisse, R. & Moreau, P.-A. (2015). True morels (Morchella, Pezizales) of Europe and North America: evolutionary relationships inferred from multilocus data and a unified taxonomy. Mycologia 107(2): 359-382. (PDF)
