Hygrocybe psittacina

Hygrocybe psittacina
H. psittacina,
Wyre Forest, England
Rosemary Winnall
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Basidiomycota
Class: Agaricomycetes
Order: Agaricales
Family: Hygrophoraceae
Genus: Hygrocybe
Species: H. psittacina
Binomial name
Hygrocybe psittacina
(Schaeff.: Fr.) P. Kumm.
Hygrocybe psittacina
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Mycological characteristics

gills on hymenium
cap is convex
hymenium is adnate
stipe is bare
spore print is white
ecology is mycorrhizal
edibility: edible

Hygrocybe psittacina, commonly known as the Parrot Toadstool or Parrot Waxcap, is a colourful member of the genus Hygrocybe, the waxcaps, found across Northern Europe. Originally described as Hygrophorus psittacinus, there have been at least two subspecies described, H. psittacina var. psittacina and H. psittacina var. perplexa, which was initially described as a separate species H. perplexa. The clade it forms within the Hygrophoraceae has been erected to restore the genus Gliophorus Herink 1958,[1] thus the name becomes Gliophorus psittacinus (Schaeff.) Herink 1958.

Description

H. psittacina on Faroe Islands stamp

The Parrot Toadstool is a small mushroom, with a convex to umbonate cap 1–3 centimetres (⅓–1 in) in diameter, which is green when young and later yellowish or even pinkish tinged. The 2–4 cm stipe is green to greenish yellow. The broad adnate gills are greenish with yellow edges and spore print white. The green colouring persists at the stem apex even in old specimens.

Its odour and taste are not distinctive. There are no known chemical tests.

It fruits late summer to autumn (September to November)[2]

Distribution and habitat

H. psittacina var. psittacina is widely distributed in grasslands in Western Europe, Iceland, Greenland, the Americas, South Africa and Japan, being found in late summer and autumn. In Europe it is apparently in decline due to the degradation of habitats. Early Australian records of this form have been found to be the similar green toadstools Hygrocybe graminicolor or H. stevensoniae on reexamination.

H. psittacina var. perplexa has been recorded in Western Europe, the Americas and Japan as well as one Australian record in Eastern Victoria.

It is found in small trooping groups amongst short mown or cropped grass.[3]

Edibility

Despite its small size and being coated in a sticky substance, Hygrocybe psittacina is often listed as edible in mushroom guides, inedible in others. Consumption of over 20 specimens in one sitting, however, can cause gastrointestinal disorders.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Babos et al. 2011. Preliminary notes on dual relevance of ITS sequences and pigments in Hygrocybe taxonomy. Persoonia 26, 2011: 99–107
  2. ↑ Sterry, Paul (2007). A Photographic Guide to Mushrooms of Britain and Europe. Connaught. ISBN 978-1-84517-038-7.
  3. ↑ Jordon, Michael (2004). The Encyclopedia Of Fungi of Britain and Europe. Frances Lincoln Ltd. ISBN 0-7112-2379-3.
    • Phillips, Roger (1981). Mushrooms of Great Britain and Europe. Pan Books, London. ISBN 0-330-26441-9.
    • Fuhrer, Bruce Alexander (2005) A Field Guide to Australian Fungi Bloomings Books, Melbourne, Australia, ISBN 1-876473-51-7 ;
    • Spooner, Brian (1996). Mushrooms and Toadstools. Collins, Glasgow. ISBN 0-00-220007-4.
    • Young, A.M. (2005). Fungi of Australia: Hygrophoraceae. (Australian Biological Resources Study) CSIRO, Canberra, ACT. ISBN 0-643-09195-5.
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