Species new to science named after Imperial campus

New fungus found at Silwood Park<em> - News Release</em>

Imperial College London news release

For immediate use
9 October 2007

A species of fungus new to science has been discovered on Imperial's Silwood Park campus, and has been named in the campus' honour. The new species is a non-edible relative of the famous Penny Bun (or Cep, Boletus edulis) commonly used in French cuisine.

The new species was found growing in a Poplar grove behind the William Penney halls of residence at Silwood Park by Alan Hills, a leading expert on boletes – the name of this type of fungi. The new finding was described in the journal Mycological Research by Alan Hills and his colleagues, in which they named the fungus Xerocomus silwoodensis. This is the latest addition to the European Xerocomus subtomentosus group of fungi which are known as the Suede Boletes for their velvety textured, rusty-coloured to pale sepia tinted caps, lemon-chrome tubes and yellow stems that sport a network of brick-red veins.

Professor Mick Crawley  from Imperial's Department of Life Sciences manages the natural habitats of the Silwood Park estate. He explained the significance of the discovery: "I suspect that it is unique for a new species to be named after a university campus, and I'm delighted that Silwood Park has been granted this honour. The 100 hectare estate was formerly part of the historic Royal hunting forest of Windsor Great Park, and currently provides an outstanding range of terrestrial and wetland habitats that are used for teaching and research on a wide range of ecological questions. It is entirely fitting that a campus dedicated to the study of biodiversity should have a new species named in its honour."

Silwood Park has a long association with research into fungi, and Honorary Lecturer – and renowned fungi expert - Ted Green MBE, has collected species at Silwood and in neighbouring Windsor Great Park since the 1960s.

The campus is located 25 miles west of central London, near the village of Sunninghill in Berkshire. Acquired by Imperial in the 1940s, the campus site is the base for over 90 postgraduate students studying a range of degrees in crop protection, ecology, evolution, conservation and other ecological subjects. The site is also provides laboratory, field-laboratory and office space for a large number of academic researchers and professors from the Divison of Biology and the College's NERC Centre for Population Biology.

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For more information please contact:
Danielle Reeves, Imperial College London Press Office,
Tel: +44 (0)20 7594 2198
Mob: +44 (0)7803 886248
Email: Danielle.reeves@imperial.ac.uk

Notes to Editors:

1. 'Xerocomus silwoodensis sp. Nov., a new species within the European X. subtomentosus complex' Mycological Research, Volume 111, pp 403 – 408.

Andy FS Taylor (1), Alan E Hills (2), Giampaolo Simonini (3), José A Munoz (4), Ursula Eberhardt (1)

(1) Department of Forest Mycology and Pathology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, PO Box 7026, Uppsala, Sweden
(2) 'Megera', Acremead Road, Wheatley, Oxfordshire.
(3)Via Bellaria 8, 42100 Reggio Emilia, Italy
(4) Funikular, 20-1A, 48510 Trapagaran – Vizcaya, Spain.

2. About Imperial College London

Rated as the world's ninth best university in the 2006 Times Higher Education Supplement University Rankings, Imperial College London is a science-based institution with a reputation for excellence in teaching and research that attracts 11,500 students and 6,000 staff of the highest international quality.

Innovative research at the College explores the interface between science, medicine, engineering and management and delivers practical solutions that improve quality of life and the environment - underpinned by a dynamic enterprise culture.

With 66 Fellows of the Royal Society among our current academic staff and distinguished past members of the College including 14 Nobel Laureates and two Fields Medallists, Imperial's contribution to society has been immense. Inventions and innovations include the discovery of penicillin, the development of holography and the foundations of fibre optics. This commitment to the application of our research for the benefit of all continues today with current focuses including interdisciplinary collaborations to tackle climate change and mathematical modelling to predict and control the spread of infectious diseases.

The College's 100 years of living science will be celebrated throughout 2007 with a range of events to mark the Centenary of the signing of Imperial's founding charter on 8 July 1907.

Website: www.imperial.ac.uk