Calocybe carnea

[ Basidiomycetes > Agaricales > Tricholomataceae > Calocybe . . . ]

by Michael Kuo

Widespread but apparently uncommon, Calocybe carnea is a little pink mushroom that grows in lawns and meadows. It has a white spore print, and gills that are attached to the stem. I am treating Calocybe persicolor as a synonym; it was originally described as growing in small clusters and possessing a stem base covered with white hairs--as opposed to a solitary-to-gregarious, naked-stemmed Calocybe carnea. Breitenbach & Kränzlin (1991) suggest that these differences may be seasonal, rather than genetic.

Although Calocybe carnea is reportedly edible, I do not recommend experimenting.

Description:

Ecology: Saprobic; growing alone, scattered, gregariously, or in small clusters in grassy areas; usually found in cultivated (rather than woodland) areas; summer and fall; apparently widely distributed in North America.

Cap: 1.5-4 cm; convex, becoming broadly convex, flat, or shallowly depressed; the margin inrolled at first; dry; fairly smooth; pink to pinkish brown.

Gills: Attached to the stem, sometimes by means of a notch--or nearly free from the stem in maturity; close or crowded; white.

Stem: 2-5 cm long; under 1 cm thick; becoming hollow with age; smooth or with white hairs and fuzz, especially basally; colored like the cap.

Flesh: Whitish, thin.

Odor & Taste: Not distinctive, or mealy.

Chemical Reactions: KOH on cap surface negative.

Spore Print: White.

Microscopic Features: Spores 4-6.5 x 2-3.5 µ; elliptical; smooth; inamyloid. Cystidia absent. Basidia with siderophilous granules. Pileipellis a cutis of elements 3.5-7 µ wide. Clamp connections present.

REFERENCES: (Bulliard, 1792) Donk, 1962. (Fries, 1821; Saccardo, 1887; Kauffman, 1918; Moser, 1983; Arora, 1986; Breitenbach & Kränzlin, 1991; Phillips, 1991/2005; Lincoff, 1992; Barron, 1999; Roody, 2003; McNeil, 2006.) Herb. Kuo 09120703.

Tricholoma carneum is a former name.

Further Online Information:

Calocybe carnea at MykoWeb
Calocybe carnea at Roger's Mushrooms

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Cite this page as:

Kuo, M. (2008, January). Calocybe carnea. Retrieved from the MushroomExpert.Com Web site: http://www.mushroomexpert.com/calocybe_carnea.html