Fungus Fact Friday

Category: Archived

#146: Gliophorus psittacinus, the Parrot Mushroom [Archived] 0

Archived

#146: Gliophorus psittacinus, the Parrot Mushroom [Archived]

Note: This is an archived post. The current version of this post is available here. This is a beautiful little waxy cap that displays one of the most striking color changes of all mushrooms. Gliophorus psittacinus is easily identified by its slimy texture and bright green color that becomes yellow as the mushroom matures.  Because the color fades, older specimens are easily confused with the many other yellowish waxy caps.  For easy identification of this mushroom, you really need to find young specimens that are still green and slimy.  As with other waxy caps, the flesh has a texture reminiscent of candle wax.  However, to experience this, one would first have to get past the considerable sliminess of the cap and stipe.  Because of its initial bright green color (which one might term “parrot green”), G. psittacinus is commonly called the “Parrot Mushroom” or “Parrot Waxcap.”  Indeed, the root word...

#143: Boletinellus merulioides, the Ash Tree Bolete [Archived] 0

Archived

#143: Boletinellus merulioides, the Ash Tree Bolete [Archived]

Note: This is an archived post. You can find the current version of this post here. Boletinellus merulioides is an odd mushroom, both in appearance and ecology. The Ash Tree Bolete can be readily identified by its pore surface – which is only a few millimeters thick and looks more like a network of ridges – and by the fact that it fruits only under ash trees.  merulioides appears under ash because it has a unique symbiotic relationship with a pest of ash trees: the Leafcurl Ash Aphid.

#142: Pluteus cervinus, the Deer Mushroom [Archived] 1

Archived

#142: Pluteus cervinus, the Deer Mushroom [Archived]

Note: This is an archived post. You can read the current version here. Pluteus cervinus is one of the first gilled mushrooms to appear in the spring, although you can also find it during summer and fall. Commonly called the “Deer Mushroom,” it is distinguished by its free gills, pinkish spore print, radish-like odor, and unique, pointed cystidia (if you have a microscope).  In Europe, the mushroom is called the “Deer Shield” (I think mushrooms in the genus Pluteus are called “shields” in Europe, though I’m not sure why) or the “Fawn Pluteus.”  I was introduced to this mushroom as the “Fawn Mushroom,” which is not as common as “Deer Mushroom” in the United States.

#140: Morchella angusticeps, the Black Morel of Eastern North America [Archived] 2

Archived

#140: Morchella angusticeps, the Black Morel of Eastern North America [Archived]

Note: This is an archived post.  You can read the current version of this post here. Black morels can be distinguished from yellow morels by their dark ridges and light pits. Other morels have light ridges with darker (or only slightly darker) pits.  Morchella angusticeps is the most widespread black morel in North America.  It can be found almost anywhere east of the Rocky Mountains, although it is not as common as yellow morels.

#124: Galerina marginata, the Deadly Galerina [Archived] 2

Archived

#124: Galerina marginata, the Deadly Galerina [Archived]

Note: this is an archived post.  Read the current version of this post here. If you are collecting for the table, this is one little brown mushroom (LBM) that you should definitely be familiar with. Most LBMs go unnoticed because they are heard to spot and are usually too small to consider worth eating.  The “Deadly Galerina” is therefore usually not dangerous on its own.  The real danger from this mushroom comes when it is accidentally collected along with a group of edible mushrooms.  Galerina marginata contains amatoxins, which are also found in such infamous species as Destroying Angels (Amanita virosa complex, FFF#050) and Death Caps (Amanita phalloides, FFF#051).  In England, G. marginata goes by the beautifully ominous name, “Funeral Bell.”  Unfortunately for me, people in the United States prefer the much blander common name, “Deadly Galerina.”

#122: Sphaerobolus stellatus, the Artillery Fungus [Archived] 2

Archived

#122: Sphaerobolus stellatus, the Artillery Fungus [Archived]

Note: this is an archived post. You can read the current version of this post here. Happy New Year! To celebrate, I decided to use some fungal cannon fire to start 2016 off with a bang!  Although it is tiny, Sphaerobolus stellatus gets just about as close as a fungus can to actually being a firework.  The tiny, star-shaped fruiting bodies are designed to launch a spherical sac of spores high into the air.  This unique spore dispersal strategy has resulted in a variety of common names, including: “Artillery Fungus,” “Cannonball Fungus,” “Cannon Fungus,” “Sphere Thrower” (which is a literal translation of its Latin name), “Shotgun Fungus,” “Shooting Star,” and “Bombardier Fungus.”

#119: Pisolithus arrhizus, the Dyeball [Archived] 1

Archived

#119: Pisolithus arrhizus, the Dyeball [Archived]

Note: This is an archived post. You can find the current version of this post here. “Our next contestant in the Ugly Mushroom contest performs thousands of hours of community service every year and is an accomplished artist. Its goal in life is to make the world a better place and form lasting relationships with those around it.  Give it up for…Pisolithus arrhizus! [applause]”  There seems to be little doubt among people that arrhizus is one of the ugliest mushrooms in the world.  The fruiting bodies of older specimens become distorted and can be mistaken for anything from animal poop to decomposing tree stumps.  Despite its unsightly appearance, this earthball can be used to dye wool, thus earning it the common name, “Dyeball.”  The fungus is also prized by gardeners and foresters for its ability to form robust mycorrhizae in extremely poor soil conditions.

#085: Schizophyllum commune, the Mushroom With Over 28,000 Sexes [Archived] 3

Archived

#085: Schizophyllum commune, the Mushroom With Over 28,000 Sexes [Archived]

Note: This is an archived post. Read the current version of this post here. Commonly known as the Split Gill, this little mushroom is easily distinguished by its small gills, which appear to be split lengthwise. The Split Gill is a notable mushroom because of its unusual morphology, ecology, and genetics.  Before I get into the bizarre world of fungal sexes, I would like to describe the physical characteristics of this distinctive mushroom.