A truffle is the fruiting body of an underground Ascomycota mushroom.
Most truffles belong to the genus Tuber, but there are other genera as well
of mushrooms belonging to this category including Geopora, Peziza, Choiromyces,
Leucangium and over a hundred others. Truffles belong in the class
Pezizomycetes and, with some exceptions, to the order Pezizales. Truffles are
mycorrhizal fungi, and therefore grow close to tree roots.
The dispersion of truffle spores occurs thanks to mycophages, animals that yes
feed on mushrooms. Under the denomination of truffle they are commonly included
There are also terfezias, a genus of the Terfeziaceae family, also known as desert truffles.
They are endemic to desert and semi-desert areas of the countries bordering the
Mediterranean, where they are highly appreciated.

Some species of truffles constitute an extremely valuable food essence, Refined and expensive
; other species are instead considered of little value or, sometimes,
even mildly toxic. In any case, truffles give off a typical penetrating scent
and persistent that develops only after maturation and that has the purpose of attracting
wild animals (pig, wild boar, badger, dormouse, fox), despite the cover
of earth, to spread the spores contained and perpetuate the species. These underground fruits
are located with the help of dogs and collected by hand.

The science that studies truffles is called hydnology and derives from the Greek ὕδνον, hýdnon. (source Wikipedia)


(Selection 2023)