bobby b Posted November 8, 2020 Report Share Posted November 8, 2020 This mushroom goes thru a dramatic color change as it dries. When fresh it is looks smooth and is an even brown color but it dries with irregular white ridges maintaining a brown center. The spore print is distinctly orange. It grows in small groups or scattered singles in grass. The grass is growing on a newly reconstructed limestone roadbed. Theres a lot of debris within the roadbed. Couldn't find anything that resembles it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave W Posted November 10, 2020 Report Share Posted November 10, 2020 Possibly Bolbitius reticulatus, although the cap colors don't seem to match this species very well. Also, the smaller mushroom (photo of undersides) appears to feature attached gills. I don't know the species B. reticulatus very well. But from what I can find online, it appears to produce mushrooms with variable appearance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobby b Posted November 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 10, 2020 Yes the gills are narrowly attached. Mushroomexpert list the gills of B reticulatus as attached to narrowly attached. It is a delicate mushroom, easily damage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave W Posted November 10, 2020 Report Share Posted November 10, 2020 Yes, "delicate" matches Bolbitius. B. titubans is so fragile it's difficult to collect. Actually, Mushroom Expert says, "Gills: Free from the stem or very narrowly attached to it..." Very interesting find. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobby b Posted November 11, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 11, 2020 The spore print could be called cinnamon brown which I think might bring Conocybe in to play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave W Posted November 11, 2020 Report Share Posted November 11, 2020 Interesting suggestion Conocybe. Although I don't know of a species in Conocybe that produces mushrooms that look like this. A thought that I had was Psathyrella. There's a species of Psathyrella --P. conissans-- that has a pink spore print. A relatively thick print of pink spores may take on a cinnamon appearance. Also, I believe there are a few Psathyrella species related to P. conissans. But, to my knowledge P. conissans does not develop the radially wrinkled cap surface as seen in some of these. I looked up my records for Bolbitius collections but there are no records of spore color. Still, I *think* I recall observing Bolbitius prints that were more along the lines of cinnamon than rusty. If you scrape some spores onto a piece of wax paper and mail them to me I could scope them. Not sure if this will resolve things. Bolbitius spores and Conocybe spores are fairly similar in size, shape, and color when viewed in a KOH mount. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobby b Posted November 11, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 11, 2020 Sounds great Dave. I have your address. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave W Posted November 12, 2020 Report Share Posted November 12, 2020 Okay, mail in the sample, bobby. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobby b Posted November 12, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 12, 2020 When I scraped it together the color was dark reddish which I guess makes Psathyrella a possibility. It's been mailed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobby b Posted November 14, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 14, 2020 Added 2 more photos from yesterday. Increased the contrast for clarity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave W Posted November 15, 2020 Report Share Posted November 15, 2020 These latest photos look more like Psathyrella to me. Most Psathyrella mushrooms have smaller spores than Bolbitius. So, maybe we can get closer to the truth with my scope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dude12o Posted November 15, 2020 Report Share Posted November 15, 2020 Does Psathyrella have a separable gelatinous pellicle? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave W Posted November 16, 2020 Report Share Posted November 16, 2020 Dude, I don't know the answer to that question. But I'm guessing that Psathyrella mushrooms --at least most of the many different species-- lack this trait. Does Bolbitius have a separable pellicle? Sounds like this may be a trait one can check without resorting to microscopy... at least perhaps when fresh material is available. (I'm guessing that dried material may be more difficult to assess.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave W Posted November 16, 2020 Report Share Posted November 16, 2020 I received the mailed spores. Mounted in 3% KOH and scoped using two scopes (one for measurements one for color). Spores are more-or-less elliptic to somewhat inequilateral in profile. Color is tinged vinaceous. Dimensions approximately 7-8.5 x 4-5. Photos seen below. I think these are a species of Psathyrella placed in subgenus Homophron. (Some mycologists have elevated Homophron to genus level.) These types of mushrooms have pinkish to reddish spore prints. I did a quick check in North American Species of Psathyrella by Alexander Smith. A species that seems to fit is Psathyrella sublateritia. The caps of this species are hygrophanous, unbonate, occasinanlly rugulose (wrinkled) or sometimes reticulate near the margin. Spores are 7.5-9(10) x 4.5-5.5 and in KOH "pallid vinaceous cinnamon to merely weakly ochraceous, depending upon the light intensity." Smith says the spores lack an apical pore. A few of the ones in my photos appear to be slightly truncate, which may indicate an apical pore... not sure. In my photos the spores (in KOH) are yellowish in the one photo and vinaceous in the other photo. This is not a bad fit for P. sublateritia. I think we're at least on the right track here. The cinnamon to dark red spore print fits in with Psathyrella subgenus Homophron. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobby b Posted November 16, 2020 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2020 Nice job Dave. Thanks! I posted this on WPMC Inaturalist project and a guy with the handle "biglaughinggym" suggested subgenus homophron. Thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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