Collybia brunneocephala | |
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Placer County, California, 2015 | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Fungi |
Division: | Basidiomycota |
Class: | Agaricomycetes |
Order: | Agaricales |
Family: | Tricholomataceae |
Genus: | Collybia |
Species: | C. brunneocephala |
Binomial name | |
Collybia brunneocephala H.E. Bigelow, 1982 | |
Synonyms | |
Clitocybe brunneocephala [1] |
Collybia brunneocephala | |
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Cap is convex or flat | |
Hymenium is adnate or decurrent | |
Stipe is bare | |
Spore print is pink | |
Edibility is choice |
Collybia brunneocephala, also known as the brown blewit or brownit, is a species of gilled mushroom. [5] Previously designated Clitocybe brunneocephala, [2] the brownit and its lavender-colored cousin the wood blewit were reassigned to the genus Collybia in 2023. [6]
As its name implies, the brownit is a brown-capped mushroom with light-beige gills. [2] The cap is usually described as "lubricious" [2] [3] and often has a rubbery-translucent gloss without being sticky. The brownit also has a bit of a stumpy, short-legged quality, as the ratio of cap diameter to stipe height heavily favors the cap. [2] The brownit flushes most frequently from December to March, [1] [5] and is most commonly observed in California in western North America. [2] Often found in lawns and open meadows, sometimes in fairy rings, it also turns up under California native oaks and Monterey cypress. [7]
The brownit is considered a "excellent" edible mushroom, [3] but it can be confused with Entoloma lividoalbum , Entoloma sericatum , and Entoloma rhodopolium , all of which are poisonous. [3] Brownits can also be mistaken for Collybia nuda (which it resembles in both "size and stature") [3] and Clitocybe tarda, but can be distinguished by color and size. [2] C. nuda often looks brown in age, but will retain undertones of lilac. [2] Clitocybe tarda mushrooms are smaller than C. brunneocephala and will retain some hint of purple on the cap, unlike Collybia brunneocephala which stays in the color range from brown to light beige. [2]
William A. Murrill originally described this species in 1913 as a Melanoleuca , based on a specimen collected by R. A. Harper in Alameda County, California. [3] [4] However, based on the minimal information provided, it was not included in later descriptions of Clitocybe species. [1] The brownit was rediscovered by David Arora in Santa Cruz County, California, in the 1970s, and Howard E. Bigelow formally redescribed it in his 1982 Clitocybe monograph using Arora's specimens. [1] There was already a Clitocybe harperi , so the Bigelow gave it a new name suggestive of its brown (brunneo-) head (-cephela). [1] [3] According to recent genetic studies by taxonomists in China, C. brunneocephala belongs to a subgenus designated Leucocalocybe , along with what were formerly designated Lepista personata , Lepista nuda, Lepista fibrosissima , Lepista sordida , and Leucocalocybe mongolica , "forming a strongly supported monophyletic clade (BP = 95%, PP = 1.00)." [6]
Clitocybe is a genus of mushrooms characterized by white, off-white, buff, cream, pink, or light-yellow spores, gills running down the stem, and pale white to brown or lilac coloration. They are primarily saprotrophic, decomposing forest ground litter. There are estimated to be around 300 species in the widespread genus.
Tricholoma is a genus of fungus that contains many fairly fleshy white-spored gilled mushrooms which are found worldwide generally growing in woodlands. These are ectomycorrhizal fungi, existing in a symbiotic relationship with various species of coniferous or broad-leaved trees. The generic name derives from Ancient Greek: τριχο-, romanized: tricho-, lit. 'hair' and Ancient Greek: λῶμα, romanized: loma, lit. 'fringe, border' although only a few species have shaggy caps which fit this description.
Collybia nuda, commonly known as the blewit or wood blewit and previously described as Lepista nuda and Clitocybe nuda, is an edible mushroom native to Europe and North America. Described by Pierre Bulliard in 1790, it was also known as Tricholoma nudum for many years. It is found in both coniferous and deciduous woodlands. It is a fairly distinctive mushroom that is widely eaten. It has been cultivated in Britain, the Netherlands and France. This species was reassigned to the genus Collybia in 2023.
Blewit refers to two closely related species of edible agarics in the genus Collybia, the wood blewit and the field blewit or blue-leg.
Lepista is a genus of mushroom-forming fungi. According to the Dictionary of the Fungi, the widespread genus contains approximately 50 species. In 1969, Howard Bigelow and Alex H. Smith designated the group as subgenus of Clitocybe.
Collybia personata is a species of edible fungus commonly found growing in grassy areas across Europe and is morphologically related to the wood blewit Collybia nuda. This mushroom was moved to the genus Collybia in 2023.
Clitocybe nebularis or Lepista nebularis, commonly known as the clouded agaric, cloudy clitocybe, or cloud funnel, is an abundant gilled fungus which appears both in conifer-dominated forests and broad-leaved woodland in Europe and North America. Appearing in Britain from mid to late autumn, it is edible, but may cause gastrointestinal issues.
Collybia is a genus of mushrooms in the family Tricholomataceae. The genus has a widespread but rare distribution in northern temperate areas, and contains three species that grow on the decomposing remains of other mushrooms.
Mycena pura, commonly known as the lilac mycena, lilac bonnet, is a species of mushroom in the family Mycenaceae. First called Agaricus prunus in 1794 by Christian Hendrik Persoon, it was assigned its current name in 1871 by German Paul Kummer. Mycena pura is known to bioaccumulate the element boron.
Melanoleuca melaleuca is a species of mushroom in the family Tricholomataceae, and it is the type species of its genus Melanoleuca. It is difficult to distinguish from other related species firstly because it is variable, secondly because the taxonomic criteria are often based on characteristics which have later been found to be variable, and thirdly because there is much disagreement between authorities as to exactly how the species should be defined.
Collybia tuberosa, commonly known as the lentil shanklet or the appleseed coincap, is an inedible species of fungus in the family Tricholomataceae, and the type species of the genus Collybia. Like the two other members of its genus, it lives on the decomposing remains of other fleshy mushrooms. The fungus produces small whitish fruit bodies with caps up to 1 cm (0.4 in) wide held by thin stems up to 5 cm (2.0 in) long. On the underside of the cap are closely spaced white gills that are broadly attached to the stem. At the base of the stem, embedded in the substrate is a small reddish-brown sclerotium that somewhat resembles an apple seed. The appearance of the sclerotium distinguishes it from the other two species of Collybia, which are otherwise very similar in overall appearance. C. tuberosa is found in Europe, North America, and Japan, growing in dense clusters on species of Lactarius and Russula, boletes, hydnums, and polypores.
Clitocybe tarda is a species of mushroom. It has a brownish pink cap with a smooth surface, the flesh is thin and brittle, and the cap tastes bitter. The stalk is slender and smooth. The spore print is pinkish gray. It is unknown if the species is edible, but it does not have a pleasant taste.
Volvariella surrecta, commonly known as the piggyback rosegill, is an agaric fungus in the family Pluteaceae. Although rare, the species is widely distributed, having been reported from Asia, North America, Northern Africa, Europe, and New Zealand. The fungus grows as a parasite on the fruit bodies of other gilled mushrooms, usually Clitocybe nebularis. V. surrecta mushrooms have white or greyish silky-hairy caps up to 8 cm (3.1 in) in diameter, and white gills that turns pink in maturity. The stipe, also white, is up to 9 cm (3.5 in) long, and has a sack-like volva at its base.
Tricholoma dryophilum is a mushroom of the agaric genus Tricholoma. First described as a member of the genus Melanoleuca by William Alphonso Murrill in 1913, he transferred it to Tricholoma later that year. It is toxic.
Tricholoma farinaceum is a mushroom of the agaric genus Tricholoma.
Clitocybe albirhiza, commonly known as the snowmelt clitocybe, is a species of agaric fungus in the family Tricholomataceae. It is found in high-elevation locations in the western United States.
Paralepista flaccida is a species of mushroom found across the Northern Hemisphere. It is known to form fairy rings.
Clitocybe violaceifolia, also known as the western cypress blewit, is a species of gilled mushroom native to western North America. C. violaceifolia can be distinguished from its choice-edible cousin, the wood blewit, by its association with trees in the cypress family. According to California mycologist Alan Rockefeller, C. violaceifolia "smells like mud". These mushrooms are theoretically edible but are reportedly quite unpalatable.
Calvatia pachyderma, also known as the elephant-skin puffball or thick-skinned puffball, is a species of edible fungus. This mid-sized, spring-fruiting puffball is known from relatively dry, open places near human settlements. The appropriate binomial name, taxonomic placement, and geographic distribution "have been much debated and are the subject of controversy".