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Psathyrella piluliformis

[ Basidiomycota > Agaricales > Psathyrellaceae > Psathyrella . . . ]

by Michael Kuo

This mushroom looks like a whole bunch of other Psathyrella species, but can be tentatively identified on the basis of its tendency to grow in clusters on the wood of hardwoods and the band of white veil tissue running along the margins of young caps. Microscopic features, which will need to be verified if your identification of Psathyrella piluliformis is going to be anything but a guess, include small ellipsoid spores, pleurocystidia that are simple, thin-walled, and more or less utriform, and variable cheilocystidia.

Psathyrella hydrophila is a synonym.

Description:

Ecology: Saprobic; growing in small to large clusters on wood or deadwood of hardwoods or woody debris; sometimes appearing terrestrial but then probably arising from buried wood; spring through fall, or over winter in warm climates; widely distributed in North America; also widely distributed in Europe. The illustrated and described collection is from California.

Cap: 3–7 cm; convex, becoming broadly convex; a little sticky when fresh; bald; brown to reddish brown or honey brown when fresh, but changing color markedly as it dries out, to dull tan; when young with a belt of white veil tissue along the margin.

Gills: Broadly attached to the stem; close; short-gills frequent; whitish to pale brownish first, becoming dull grayish brown.

Stem: 6–9 cm long; 4–9 mm thick; equal; fragile; bald or very finely silky; whitish, discoloring brownish where handled; without a ring.

Flesh: Thin; fragile; watery brownish.

Odor and Taste: Not distinctive.

Spore Print: Brown.

Microscopic Features: Spores 5–6 x 2.5–3.5 µm; ellipsoid; with a very tiny pore; smooth; brownish in KOH. Lamellar trama parallel. Pleurocystidia 30–50 x 10–15 µm; utriform; smooth; thin-walled; hyaline in KOH. Cheilocystidia 35–50 x 7.5–10 µm; widely cylindric to subutriform; smooth; thin-walled; hyaline in KOH. Pileipellis hymeniform/cellular; terminal elements 15–30 µm across, subglobose, smooth, hyaline to orangish brown in KOH.


REFERENCES: (Bulliard, 1783) P. D. Orton, 1969. (Smith, 1972; Kits van Waveren, 1982; Kits van Waveren, 1985; Arora, 1986; Phillips, 1991/2005; Lincoff, 1992; Breitenbach & Kränzlin, 1995; Barron, 1999; McNeil, 2006; Miller & Miller, 2006; Padamsee et al., 2008; Vasutová et al., 2008; Trudell & Ammirati, 2009; Desjardin, Wood & Stevens, 2015; Siegel & Schwarz, 2016; Baroni, 2017; Örstadius & Knudsen, 2018; Læssøe & Petersen, 2019.) Herb. Kuo 01151101.


This site contains no information about the edibility or toxicity of mushrooms.


 

Psathyrella piluliformis

Psathyrella piluliformis

Psathyrella piluliformis

Psathyrella piluliformis
Spores

Psathyrella piluliformis
Pleurocystidium

Psathyrella piluliformis
Pileipellis



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Cite this page as:

Kuo, M. (2020, February). Psathyrella piluliformis. Retrieved from the MushroomExpert.Com Web site: http://www.mushroomexpert.com/psathyrella_piluliformis.html