I am writing to inform you that this attached represents my "last" mycological work. I have in fact decided to completely and definitively cease my activity, both as a researcher and writer and as a consultant. The reasons why I have made this decision are many: I have various interests beyond mycology, especially a beautiful two-and-a-half-year-old grandchild to whom I want to pass on all my experiences, then the bridge, billiards and fishing, the latter I recovered, as in the good old days, almost professionally. But I do not want to completely deceive you: there is a motivation that surpasses all the others! I'll explain. You are perfectly aware that modern Mycology is increasingly oriented towards the genetic study of fungi and that the phenotype has become almost negligible in the eyes of many, so it seems that there is no place for the so-called morphologists (I one of these).
Since I did not want to stay behind with the times, I tried, in some cases successfully (see some of my works), a university approach with genetics, but university times are very long, sometimes even several years, and some university mycologists do not they are willing to cooperate. The result is that after four years of waiting I was forced to publish a new species without the aid of DNA sequences. The experts will be able to check, by reading my last work, how important it would be to make a comparative study.
Anyone interested can find all my work on coprophile mushrooms and not on Researchgate (downloadable).
Thanks to all those who have collaborated with me and to those who have endured my lengthy reviews.
Hello everybody,
Dr. Francesco Doveri

David Malloch, 02-07-2018 15:11

Re : Hello everybody

Dear Francesco,

Thank you for making your excellent new publication available to those of us on AscoFrance. It has been many years since I have worked with cleistothecial ascomycetes and, as you paper shows, much has changed. I appreciate the update.

Regarding your reasons for leaving mycology. I can fully appreciate your desire to devote more time to other interests and to your grandchild. These things come among the joys of retirement. I am less in agreement with you about the influence of genetic studies on the relevance of morphology. Genetics and the resultant phylogenies are immensely useful tools, but they do not replace morphology. If your apple tree is infected by a fungus you may be less interested in the name of the fungus and be more concerned with how it got there and if it will spread. Morphology and chemistry will hold the answer. Genetics may hold the place of honour in mycology now, but I suspect your work will remain alive and cited long after most of today's cutting edge has become obsolete.

Dave