| Major Groups > Bird's Nest Fungi > Cyathus olla |
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Cyathus olla [ Basidiomycetes > Agaricales > Nidulariaceae > Cyathus . . . ] by Michael Kuo Widely distributed and common in North America, this Bird's Nest Fungus has a smooth, silvery gray inner surface. By maturity the outer edge of the nest is usually somewhat wavy, and opened quite wide. The brownish to grayish outer surface of the nest is smooth to minutely hairy or velvety. The "eggs" are quite large, measuring up to 3 or 3.5 mm across. Edibility is not known for Cyathus olla, but I can't imagine that anyone would care. Description: Ecology: Saprobic; growing scattered, gregariously, or in dense clusters; sometimes growing terrestrially, but often found on woody debris; frequently encountered on dead plant stems, including corn husks in cornfields and debris in canola fields; summer and fall; widely distributed in North America. Nest: Typically 1.5 cm high and about 1 cm wide; cup-shaped or goblet-shaped; outer surface brownish to grayish, smooth or minutely hairy to velvety (but not conspicuously hairy); inner surface smooth and shiny, silvery gray to blackish; "lid" typically whitish to pale grayish, soon disappearing; outer edge flared open widely by maturity, frequently broadly wavy. Eggs: To 3 or 4 mm wide; irregular in shape; sheathed; attached to the nest by cords. Microscopic Features: Spores 10-14 x 6-8 µ; smooth; egg-shaped to elliptical. REFERENCES: (Batsch, 1783) Persoon, 1801. (Brodie, 1975; Phillips, 1991/2005; Barron, 1999; Fay, Scates & Ramsey, 2003; McNeil, 2006.) Herb. Kuo 05070501. An "enormous" form of Cyathus olla, Cyathus olla f. anglicus, measures up to 2 cm high and 1.5 cm across; it is recorded from Oregon and Alberta. Further Online Information: Cyathus olla at MykoWeb |
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Cite this page as: Kuo, M. (2006, April). Cyathus olla. Retrieved from the MushroomExpert.Com Web site: http://www.mushroomexpert.com/cyathus_olla.html |