Pholiotina smithii

Pholiotina smithii
Pholiotina smithii
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Basidiomycota
Class: Agaricomycetes
Order: Agaricales
Family: Bolbitiaceae
Genus: Pholiotina
Species: P. smithii
Binomial name
Pholiotina smithii
(Watling)Enderle
Synonyms

Conocybe smithii Watling (1967)
Galera cyanopes Kaufmann (1908)

Pholiotina smithii
View the Mycomorphbox template that generates the following list

Mycological characteristics

gills on hymenium

cap is conical

or convex
hymenium is adnate
stipe is bare
spore print is brown
ecology is saprotrophic
edibility: psychoactive

Pholiotina smithii is a rare member of the genus Pholiotina which contains the hallucinogenic alkaloid psilocybin. It was formerly known as Galera cyanopes.

Description

Distribution and habitat

Pholiotina smithii is found in North America and often grows in bogs, ditches and swampy areas, commonly in sphagnum moss. Also found along river banks and in lawns.

It is known to occur in Canada, Oregon, Wisconsin, Washington, and Michigan, but is probably more widely distributed.

On the west coast of America, Pholiotina smithii is an early summer mushroom, almost never appearing after the first week of June.

Edibility

Mildly hallucinogenic, containing psilocin, psilocybin, and baeocystin. Most mycologists recommend against eating this mushroom because it is difficult to distinguish from poisonous species.

References

External links