Mushrooms of Madison Heights
Pasadena isn't exactly a mycologist's dream, but I've studied every mushroom I can get my hands on for the last few years. It turns out that a number of species are very common and often quite reliable. The vast majority, of course, are found in lawns well-watered and well-fertilized with manure, lawns make a perfect habitat for mushrooms. But I've found some on bare ground and on trees, as well.
I've limited this guide to the area I patrol regularly when I find myself in town, that is, Madison Heights. I'm not quite sure what a real estate agent's definition would be; for my purposes, I've defined Madison Heights as the neighborhood of Pasadena east of Arroyo, south of California, west of Lake, north of Glenarm.
This is still pretty tentative. I have no doubt there are many species I have yet to discover in the area. The scientific names will eventually be linked into my notes, where you can find locations, dates, more pictures, descriptions, etc. Remarkably, I'm fairly confident of all my identifications. I've used David Arora's excellent guide almost exclusively, supplementing it with the Lincoff's less-useful guide and photos on the web (e.g. mushroomexpert.com and especially mykoweb.com are particularly useful sometimes). Thanks to Darvin DeShazer and Nathan Wilson for correcting several of my IDs.
The key makes little attempt to group species according to family or genus. The species descriptions following the key are just listed alphabetically. I've used Arora's taxonomy, largely because he seems to be a lumper, and lumping is very helpful for beginners. Splitting Lepiota up into three genera, for example, tends to hide the morphological similarities that are very useful for beginners just learning how to identify mushrooms. But do be aware that these artificial groupings obscure their true affinities. It's a trade-off, but I think it's better to learn to ID things artificially than to get bogged down in technical details and wind up learning nothing!
The best mushroom hunting, as elsewhere, is in the week following significant rain. However, a handful of species can be found throughout the year, especially: Conocybe lactea, Panaeolus foenisecii, Agaricus californicus, and Chlorophyllum molybdites. Go out hunting in the morning if you want to beat gardeners and dogs to the prize. Some delicate species, such as Coprinus plicatilis, will scarcely survive till noon, even if unmolested.
KEY
This key should cover all the species I've studied. I tried to make it non-technical, avoiding chemical tests and microscopic details as much as possible. There are without question mushrooms occurring in the area which I have not seen. Many may well incorrectly key out to something I have seen. Please check the species descriptions for critical characteristics to see if you really have the species indicated, or if you have one I simply haven't noticed yet.
1. mushroom with cap and stalk 2. gills under cap... Gilled Mushrooms 2. tubes under cap... Boletes 1. shelf or puffball 3. shelf (generally with minute pores on underside)... Shelf Fungi 3. puffball (spore mass hidden inside)... Puffballs
Gilled Mushrooms
1. very small and delicate, stem 1-3 mm thick (scattered in lawns) 2. white or whitish with some brown or yellow tints 3. cap white, conical even when old, not pleated... Conocybe lactea 3. cap either opening up in age or pleated 4. cap very delicate, almost translucent, not slimy... Coprinus plicatilis 4. cap larger, not translucent, slimy when young 5. yellow when young... (Bolbitius vitellinus) 5. whitish to brownish... Bolbitius coprophilus 2. medium to dark brown, at least when fresh 6. scattered fibrils on cap and margin, at least when young... Psathyrella candolleana 6. perfectly smooth... Panaeolus foenisecii 1. small to large, stem > 4 mm thick 7. ring present 8. gills very pale whitish, yellowish, or greenish... Parasols 8. gills pinkish turning brown then almost black... Agaricus 7. no ring 9. gills turning gooey black in a few days... Inky Caps 9. gills pale or turning dark brown, but never liquefying (warning! this part of the key is vastly oversimplified!) 10. scattered fibrils on cap and margin, at least when young... Psathyrella candolleana 10. cap perfectly smooth 11. cap white or yellowish in age (gills turning brown)... Agaricus comtulus 11. cap reddish to brown to gray (gills pale) 12. gills obviously free... Pluteus cervinus 12. gills maybe notched but at least slightly attached to stem 13. spore print pink... Nolanea stricta 13. spore print white 14. cap brick-red, stalk minutely cottony... Mycena pura-group 14. cap brown, stalk smooth... Melanoleuca graminicola
Agaricus
1. small (cap < 4 cm)... Agaricus comtulus 1. larger (cap > 4 cm, stalk often > 1 cm thick) 2. all parts (esp. base of stem) bruising deep yellow... Agaricus xanthodermus 2. not bruising, bruising only weakly yellowish, or staining reddish 3. flesh staining weakly reddish when cut, esp. around gills... Agaricus bernardii 3. flesh not staining or only weakly yellowish 4. cap under 10cm, dull to shiny, white to brownish 5. cap and flesh turning yellow in lye... Agaricus californicus 5. no reaction with lye... (Agaricus campestris) 4. largest caps over 10cm (check several)... (Agaricus arvensis)
Inky Caps
1. gills drying out and withering within a day... Coprinus plicatilis 1. gills turning gooey black in a few days 2. cap shaggy-scaly... (Coprinus comatus) 2. cap smooth or at most with scattered particles (clustered near trees) 3. cap brownish, with scattered whitish particles... Coprinus micaceus 3. cap gray-brown, perfectly smooth... (Coprinus atramentarius)
Parasols
1. cap pale to deep yellow, base of stem bulbous... Lepiota lutea 1. cap white or with some brown spots 2. cap with conspicuous sharp large brown scales or patches... Chlorophyllum molybdites 2. cap smooth, mealy, or fibrillose 3. cap covered with fine brownish fibrils or scales... Lepiota barssii 3. cap smooth or mealy 4. delicate (stem 4-8 mm thick), generally mealy, clustered... Lepiota cepaestipes 4. stout (stem 7-14 mm thick), perfectly smooth, not clustered... Lepiota naucina
Boletes
1. tubes ochre, spore print yellowish brown (check stalk and grass underneath) 2. cap brown to reddish-brown, stalk smooth, at most weakly bruising blue 3. red showing through cracks... (Boletus chrysenteron) 3. only pale yellow in cracks 4. cap and stalk reddish... (Boletus dryophilus) 4. cap purely brown... Boletus subtomentosus 2. cap another color, conspicuously bruising, or stalk ridged (any of a number of other species) 1. (probably another genus)
Shelf Fungi
1. fuzzy buff to varnished reddish, growing on oak... Phellinus gilvus 1. (some other polypore)
Puffballs
1. tough and black inside 2. surface smooth, brown... Scleroderma cepa-group 2. (other earthballs) 1. spongy and pallid inside 3. huge, surface whitish, cracking into thin plates... Calvatia booniana 3. (other puffballs)
SPECIES
Agaricus californicus, Field Mushroom
This is the most common Agaricus in this area, though not as common as the green-spored parasol or any of the smaller ones like the dunce cap or lawnmower's mushroom. It doesn't get quite as large as the green-spored parasol, and the whitish to brownish cap is smooth and shiny or at most weakly scaly. It is a stout, low mushroom, barely raising its cap above the surrounding lawn, and often growing in clumps. The genus is immediately recognizable by the combination of gill color and ring on the stalk. The gills change from white through pinkish to dark brown as they age over about two to three days. The critical technical detail is that the cap and flesh react bright yellow in lye (within a minute).
Agaricus comtulus, Miniature Field Mushroom
This is, for all intents and purposes, a small version of the field mushroom above. Like the field mushroom, this one also stains yellow in lye. However, this one has a more pleaseant odor. The best way to tell the difference is to nibble a bit of the cap (don't swallow!) it has a striking almondy flavor. That together with the nearly pure white color, diminutive stature, and less well-developed ring seem to define the species.
Agaricus bernardii
Coming soon...
Agaricus xanthodermus, Yellow Stainer
Coming soon...
Bolbitius coprophilus
This forgettable lawn mushroom is less common than the dunce cap. It is small and fragile, but larger than the pleated inky cap. The cap starts out almost conical, but very rapidly deploys and becomes nearly flat or slightly umbonate. Their color varies from whitish to pinkish to brownish to sometimes yellowish, with the center of the cap always being the deepest color. The caps are finely pleated, but never as deeply as pleated inky caps, nor are they as translucent. They seem to prefer to grow in groups unlike dunce caps, but they are still mostly scattered within those groups unlike pleated inky caps. A useful technical detail that helps clinch the genus at very least is the delightful gooey slime on fresh or moist caps. There are several very similar species, but it seems this is the one common to our area: there's usually some pink cast to either the stalk or the cap, and the spores are mostly > 13 um long. The species epithet is a nod to its preference for well-manured lawns.
Boletus subtomentosus, Brown Cracked-Cap Bolete
I've seen this bolete several times, always growing near the base of an oak. It has a dry, brownish cap that is often conspicuously cracked, exposing pale yellowish flesh inside. The ochre-yellow spongy layer of tubes under the cap darkens and turns somewhat bluish when pinched. The stalk is smooth and some combination of yellow, brown, and even red. There are several subtly-different look-alikes to be expected in the area:
Cracks expose red flesh... B. chrysenteron Tubes are small (less than 1mm)... B. fragrans Cap turns momentarily blue to blue-green in ammonium hydroxide... B. spadiceus Spores are lopped off at one end... B. truncatus
Calvatia booniana, Giant Puffball
Coming soon...
Chlorophyllum molybdites, Green-Spored Parasol
This is our largest lawn mushroom. It is quite common, but it will only fruit for a few weeks at a time at distantly (but apparently randomly) scattered times throughout the year. They are instantly recognizable at maturity by their large white scaly caps. The critical technical characteristic is the greenish spore print, but in practice this can be difficult to see. Also look for the conspicuous white ring near the top of the stalk, the livid greenish gills (when mature), and the faint but unpleasant odor. This is poisonous!
Conocybe lactea, Dunce Cap
This ubiquitous little lawn mushroom can be found scattered in well-watered lawns almost throughout the year. The cute little perfect conical white caps are quite distinctive. They are extremely short-lived: they pop up in the middle of the night and generally wither by noon. Catch 'em early! Technical details include spore color, cap shape, fragility, etc. But don't worry, they're unlikely to be mistaken for anything else I've found growing in Pasadena, except maybe a sun-bleached washed-off Psathyrella candolleana.
Coprinus plicatilis, Pleated Inky Cap
This minute jewel of a mushroom is a never-ending source of delight. It grows in little clumps of one to several, scattered over small areas of lawn. The delicate caps are deeply pleated and almost translucent. They are sort of brownish, but often with a grayish or even blackish tinge. The wiry white stalk is relatively tall. They typically only last a day or two, but while fruiting, new ones will come up each morning for up to several weeks at a time. Unlike other inky-caps, this one does not auto-digest its gills, perhaps because it dries out before it has a chance to do so.
Coprinus micaceus, Mica Cap
These grow in dense clusters at the base of trees or around roots. They are small but relatively substantial things. The caps are generally a pleasing light to medium brown, tall and conic to bell-shaped, and covered with mealy whitish particles at least when young or fresh. The stalks are relatively thick and about as tall as the caps or longer. They seem to fruit all at once, lasting only for a day or two before liquefying and turning into a puddle of foul inky goo. It is a species of inky cap, like the pleated inky cap above. The gills auto-digest when mature, the resulting goo sticking to passing insects and mammals, who then obligingly transport the ripe spores to new locations. While this one is listed as edible, and perhaps even big enough to provide a mouthful or two, it can easily be mistaken for the similar "alcohol inky-cap" which can be very unpleasant if eaten with alcohol (it contains a toxin that destroys the enzyme the body uses to metabolize alcohol!) The latter, however, does not and never has sported the distinctive mica-like granules on its cap that the mica cap invariably does. Just be careful, because those granules will wash off easily under a sprinkler!
Lepiota barssii, Gray Parasol
Coming soon...
Lepiota cepaestipes, Onion-Stalked Parasol
Coming soon...
Lepiota lutea, Yellow Parasol
Coming soon...
Lepiota naucina, Smooth Parasol
Coming soon...
Melanoleuca graminicola
Coming soon...
Mycena pura-group
Coming soon...
Nolanea stricta
I've only seen this once. This is yet another LBM that grows associated with trees or rotten wood. I am by no means certain of my determination of the species. There are a number of small drab Nolanea. As a genus...
Panaeolus foenisecii, Lawnmower's Mushroom
This little brown guy is a very common lawn mushroom. It must be the inspiration behind the derogatory acronym LBM little brown mushroom. They pop up in small numbers at random times throughout the year. They have small convex caps (that will eventually open all the way up if conditions are favorable). They are a shade of brown that defies description: anywhere from dark brown to chocolate brown to pale or honey buff, often lighter near the margin. (The color fades as they dry out, a perfect example of what is called "hygrophanous".) It is of critical importance that they be smooth, but there's enough color-texture that they can often appear to be somewhat fibrous or almost matted-hairy to the naked eye. Truly, these are best recognized as not being the other LBM (see below). There is some confusion, it seems, about what genus it belongs to. I've seen it called Panaeolus foenisecii (Arora), Panaeolina foenisecii (Roger's Mushrooms), and Psathyrella foenisecii (Lincoff).
Phellinus gilvus, Oak Polypore
This is a shelf mushroom, growing on dead or live tree trunks, especially oaks. The upper surface is minutely velvety and yellowish when young and growing, but turns reddish brown and almost varnished with age The lower or fertile surface is smooth to gently undulating, pale yellowish-buff, and completely covered with minute little pin-prick pores (you might need a hand lens to see them). An important technical characteristic is that all parts (cap, flesh, and pores) will darken or turn black in lye. Once established, it will grow reliably for years. It appears to do little damage to living trees... at least in the years I've been watching.
Pluteus cervinus, Deer or Fawn Mushroom
I've only seen this once. It is an unimpressive brownish mushroom growing on decaying wood or sawdust debris. While the color varies from pale to dark brown or grayish-brown, it is always perfectly smooth and somewhat tacky with a distinctive soft but firm texture. While it barely escapes being an LBM (it can be quite large), technically it is easy to identify: it has a smooth stem with no veils; the pale, almost pinkish gills are completely free from the stalk; it has a distinctive pink spore print; and most exciting of all, the gills fairly bristle with these bizarre little horned structures called cystidia easily visible in a microscopic section, even at 100x. If I may judge from my one experience, this edible mushroom also has the interesting distinction of having the longest shelf-life of any mushroom I've ever picked -- it looked fresh and perky even after sitting for two days on my dining room table!
Psathyrella candolleana, Common Psathyrella
This LBM is far less common in my experience than Panaeolus foenisecii. It also pops up in lawns, like the lawnmower's mushroom, and has a highly variable color (anywhere from honey to brown to buff), but it has a few distinctive characteristics that help identify it. In my experience they have much better-shaped domed caps, mostly smooth and even-colored but for a faint scattering of minute fibrils especially when young. In particular, look for tatters of a cobwebby cortina hanging from the margin (see photos). Once you've studied both this and the lawnmower's mushroom, you will never fail to distinguish them in the future.
Scleroderma cepa-group, Smooth Earthball
This might be quite common, but most go unnoticed, hidden among the fallen leaves of oaks. It is just a misshapen brown blob, but slice it open to reveal the beautiful purple-black textured spore mass. The smooth tough rind, small "root", and the spore mass that never softens or liquefies separate it from other kinds of earthballs and puffballs. For those so motivated, the bristly spores are especially beautiful. The closely related S. bovista has reticulate spores instead.