Fig. 2

Accumulation of basidiospores in plastic lids over the time during incubation of mushrooms positioned upside-down on wet tissues in the base of Petri-dishes or glass jars. a, b Experimental Set-up 1: The two halves of different mushroom caps of Paneolus cinctulus (in total from 20 caps) and Coprinellus micaceus (in total from 15 caps) and whole caps of Coprinellus domesticus (in total 30 caps, all slightly dehydrated) were incubated in parallel in distinct Petri-dishes for fixed times to collect their spores in plastic lids, count the harvests and calculate from each two respective values the averages presented in the figures. Four complete caps were incubated in different dishes for Marasmius wynneae, the four quarters of single mushrooms for all other species. At distinct times (indicated in the figures by ×), the spores of an individual mushroom or an individual quarter were harvested for counting. c–e Experimental Set-up 2: Spores from whole fruiting bodies or parts of fruiting bodies were harvested at distinct time points and lids were then put back onto the Petri-dishes for further incubation and spore collection. Spores per point of harvest were counted and the different values for an individual sample were added together in order to calculate total spore numbers over the whole length of an incubation period. Average values with standard deviations were calculated for all species from each three distinct samples run in parallel. Halves of caps for C. micaceus, Coprinellus truncorum, Coprinopsis atramentaria, Kuehneromyces mutabilis, Lepista nuda, and Panellus serotinus were used, quarters of caps for Pholiota squarrosa, eighths of caps for Coprinus comatus, and complete mushrooms for all other species (for their full names see Table 2)