Psilocybe tampanensis is a very rare psychedelic mushroom in the family Hymenogastraceae. Originally collected in the wild in a sandy meadow near Tampa, Florida in 1977, the fungus has never again been reported in Florida, but was later collected in Mississippi. The original Florida specimen was cloned, and descendants remain in wide circulation. The fruit bodies (mushrooms) produced by the fungus are yellowish-brown in color with convex to conic caps up to 2.4 cm (0.9 in) in diameter atop a thin stem up to 6 cm (2.4 in) long. Psilocybe tampanensis forms psychoactive truffle-like sclerotia that are known and sold under the nickname "philosopher's stones". The fruit bodies and sclerotia are consumed by some for recreational or entheogenic purposes. In nature, sclerotia are produced by the fungus as a rare form of protection from wildfires and other natural disasters.
Tylopilus felleus, commonly known as the bitter bolete or the bitter tylopilus, is a fungus of the bolete family. Its distribution includes east Asia, Europe, and eastern North America, extending south into Mexico and Central America. A mycorrhizal species, it grows in deciduous and coniferous woodland, often fruiting under beech and oak. Its fruit bodies have convex to flat caps that are some shade of brown, buff, or tan, and typically measure up to 15 cm (6 in) in diameter. The pore surface is initially white before turning pinkish with age. Like most boletes it lacks a ring, and it may be distinguished from Boletus edulis and other similar species by its unusual pink pores and the prominent dark brown netlike pattern on its stalk.
Daedaleopsis confragosa, commonly known as the thin walled maze polypore or the blushing bracket, is a species of polypore fungus in the family Polyporaceae. A plant pathogen, it causes a white rot of injured hardwoods, especially willows. The fruit bodies are semicircular and tough, have a concentrically zoned brownish upper surface, and measure up to 20 cm (8 in) in diameter. The whitish underside turns gray-brown as the fruit body ages, but bruises pink or red. It is found all year and is common in northern temperate woodlands of eastern North America, Europe, and Asia. The species was first described from Europe in 1791 as a form of Boletus, and has undergone several changes of genus in its taxonomic history. It acquired its current name when Joseph Schröter transferred it to Daedaleopsis in 1888.
Scutellinia scutellata, commonly known as the eyelash cup, the Molly eye-winker, the scarlet elf cap, the eyelash fungus or the eyelash pixie cup, is a small saprophytic fungus of the genus Scutellinia. It is the type species of Scutellinia, as well as being the most common and widespread. The fruiting bodies are small red cups with distinct long, dark hairs or "eyelashes". These eyelashes are the most distinctive feature and are easily visible with a magnifying glass. The species is common in North America and Europe, and has been recorded on every continent. S. scutellata is found on rotting wood and in other damp habitats, typically growing in small groups, sometimes forming clusters. It is sometimes described as inedible, but its small size means it is not suitable for culinary use. Despite this, it is popular among mushroom hunters due to its unusual "eyelash" hairs, making it memorable and easy to identify.
Macrolepiota clelandii, commonly known as the slender parasol or graceful parasol, is a species of mushroom-forming fungus in the family Lepiotaceae. The species is found in Australia and New Zealand, where it fruits singly or in small groups on the ground in eucalypt woodlands, parks, and roadsides. It is a tall mushroom up to roughly 20 cm (8 in), with a broad cap covered with distinctive rings of dark brown scales. The whitish gills on the cap underside are closely spaced and free from attachment to the slender stipe, which has a loose ring on its upper half, and a bulbous base. The edibility of the mushroom is not known with certainty, but closely related parasol mushrooms are edible and some are very sought after.
Aquamarina is a fungal genus in the class Dothideomycetes. It is a monotypic genus, containing the single marine species Aquamarina speciosa, originally found in North Carolina, and distributed in the Atlantic Coast of the United States. The bluish-green species fruits exclusively in the lower parts of dying culms of the saltmarsh plant Juncus roemerianus.
Gymnopilus communis is a species of agaric fungus in the family Strophariaceae. Found in Veracruz, Mexico, it was described as new to science in 1994.
Amanita abrupta, commonly known as the American abrupt-bulbed lepidella, is a species of fungus in the family Amanitaceae. Named for the characteristic shape of its fruit bodies, this white Amanita has a slender stem, a cap covered with conical white warts, and an "abruptly enlarged" swollen base. This terrestrial species grows in mixed woods in eastern North America and eastern Asia, where it is thought to exist in a mycorrhizal relationship with a variety of both coniferous and deciduous tree species.
Mycena adscendens, commonly known as the frosty bonnet, is a species of fungus in the family Mycenaceae. The fungus produces small white fruit bodies (mushrooms) with caps up to 7.5 mm (0.3 in) in diameter that appear to be dusted with sugar-like granules. Caps are supported by thin, hollow stems up to 20 mm (0.8 in) long, which are set on a disc-like base. It is distributed in the United States, where it has been found from Washington to California, Europe, and Turkey. The fruit bodies grow on fallen twigs and other woody debris on the forest floor, including fallen hazel nuts. The variety carpophila is known from Japan. There are several small white Mycena species that are similar in appearance to M. adscendens, some of which can be reliably distinguished only by examining microscopic characteristics.
Psilocybe hispanica is a species of fungus in the family Hymenogastraceae. It produces small brown mushrooms with conical to convex caps up to 10 mm (0.4 in) in diameter and stems 16 to 25 mm long by 0.5 to 1 mm thick. Reported as new to science in 2000, it is only known from the Pyrenees mountain range in northern Spain and southwestern France, where it grows on horse dung in grass fields at elevations of 1,700 to 2,300 m. The mushroom contains the psychoactive compound psilocybin. The possible depiction of this species in the 6,000-year-old Selva Pascuala rock art suggests that it might have been used in ancient religious rituals—the oldest evidence of such usage in prehistoric Europe.
Psilocybe makarorae is a species of psilocybin mushroom in the family Strophariaceae. Officially described as new to science in 1995, it is known only from New Zealand, where it grows on rotting wood and twigs of southern beeches. The fruit body (mushroom) has a brownish cap with lighter coloured margins, measuring up to 3.5 cm (1.4 in) wide. The cap shape is either conical, bell-shaped, or flat depending on the age of the mushroom, and it features a prominent umbo. Although the whitish stem does not form a true ring, it retains remnants of the partial veil that covers and protects the gills of young fruit bodies. P. makarorae mushrooms can be distinguished from the similar North American species Psilocybe caerulipes by microscopic characteristics such as the presence of cystidia on the gill faces (pleurocystidia), and cheilocystidia with more elongated necks. Based on the bluing reaction to injury, P. makarorae is presumed to contain the psychedelic compounds psilocybin and psilocin.
Cortinarius praestans, also known as the goliath webcap, is a basidiomycete mushroom of the genus Cortinarius. The mushroom has orangish-yellow caps that reach up to 20 cm (7.9 in) in diameter, and thick club-shaped stipes up to 15 cm (5.9 in) long. The edible mushroom is found in Europe.
Entoloma haastii is a mushroom in the Entolomataceae family. Described as new to science in 1964, it is known only from New Zealand, where it grows on the ground in leaf litter, usually near Nothofagus species.
Spongiforma squarepantsii is a species of fungus in the family Boletaceae, genus Spongiforma. Found in America, it was described as new to science in 2011. It produces sponge-like, rubbery orange fruit bodies that have a fruity or musky odour. The fruit bodies reach dimensions of 10 cm (3.9 in) wide by 7 cm (2.8 in) tall. Like a sponge, they will resume their original shape if water is squeezed out. The spores, produced on the surfaces of the hollows of the sponge, are almond-shaped with rough surfaces, and measure 10‑12.5 μm by 6‑7 μm. The name of the fungus is derived from the Nickelodeon cartoon character SpongeBob SquarePants from the show of the same name. S. squarepantsii is one of two species in Spongiforma; it differs from S. thailandica in its color, odour, and spore structure.
Phellinus ellipsoideus is a species of polypore fungus in the family Hymenochaetaceae, a specimen of which produced the largest fungal fruit body ever recorded. Found in China, the fruit bodies produced by the species are brown, woody basidiocarps that grow on dead wood, where the fungus feeds as a saprotroph. The basidiocarps are perennial, allowing them to grow very large under favourable circumstances. They are resupinate, measuring 30 centimetres (12 in) or more in length, though typically extending less than a centimetre from the surface of the wood. P. ellipsoideus produces distinct ellipsoidal spores, after which it is named, and unusual setae. These two features allow it to be readily differentiated microscopically from other, similar species. Chemical compounds isolated from the species include several steroidal compounds. These may have pharmacological applications, but further research is needed.
Archaeorhizomycetes is a class of fungi in the subdivision Taphrinomycotina of the Ascomycota. So far, the class has only one described order, Archaeorhizomycetales, family, Archaeorhizomycetaceae, and genus, Archaeorhizomyces. The class was first described by a team led by Anna Rosling in 2011. Species in the class are globally distributed, and grow in soil and around roots. Specific known host trees of various Archaeorhizomyces species include hemlock, spruce, pine and heather, but other species colonise hardwoods generally.
Lepiota babruzalka is an agaric mushroom of the genus Lepiota in the order Agaricales. Described as new to science in 2009, it is found in Kerala State, India, where it grows on the ground in litterfall around bamboo stems. Fruit bodies have caps that measure up to 1.3 cm (0.5 in) in diameter, and are covered with reddish-brown scales. The cap is supported by a long and slender stem up to 4.5 cm (1.8 in) long and 1.5 millimetres (0.1 in) thick. One of the distinguishing microscopic features of the species is the variably shaped cystidia found on the edges of the gills.
Coccomyces dentatus is a species of fungus in the family Rhytismataceae. A widespread species, particularly in temperate areas, it colonizes the dead fallen leaves of vascular plants, particularly oak and chestnut. The fungus apothecia, which form in the epidermal layer of the leaf host, resemble dark hexagonal spots scattered on a multi-colored mosaic pattern bounded by thin black lines. When mature, the apothecia open by triangular flaps to release spores. The anamorph form of C. dentatus is Tricladiopsis flagelliformis. Lookalike species can be distinguished by the shape of the apothecia, or by microscopic characteristics.
Acarospora janae is a species of lichen in the Acarosporaceae family. Described as new to science in 2011, it is known only from New Mexico and Colorado in the United States, where it grows on siliceous rock.
Bovista pila, commonly known as the tumbling puffball, is a species of puffball fungus in the family Agaricaceae. A temperate species, it is widely distributed in North America, where it grows on the ground on road sides, in pastures, grassy areas, and open woods. There are few well-documented occurrences of B. pila outside North America. B. pila closely resembles the European B. nigrescens, from which it can be reliably distinguished only by microscopic characteristics.
