Amanita sect. Vaginatae comprises all and only those taxa of subgenus Amanita that
have the basidiome deveoping approximately centrally in the primordium and have a totally elongating (bulbless) stipe;
lack or have very few clamp connections at the bases of basidia.
In addition to the defining characters above, all known taxa of this section are originally covered entirely in a volva (universal veil) that ranges from nearly pulverulent to friable to submembranous to membranous. Among the taxa with universal veils that are not submembranous or membranous, several are now known to have bright colored pigments (e.g., yellow, orange, or red) in their universal veils at least early in development. A number of taxa with non membranous universal veils, have such veils becoming gray or a sordid form of their original color with exposure to air and aging. In the same taxa, the lamellae may also become sordid with age. Taxa with strictly membranous universal veils, may have rusty, ochraceous, or some other color of staining on the external surface of their saccate volva.
The supraspecific subdivisions provided for this section should all be considered provisional (in most cases the names are not published). The systematics of the section is under study morphologically and genetically by RET and a growing number of other researchers. The subdivisions presented at the present time will undoubtedly be subject to extensive revision.
sample taxa
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