Asterophora lycoperdoides
| Asterophora lycoperdoides | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Basidiomycota |
| Class: | Agaricomycetes |
| Order: | Agaricales |
| Family: | Lyophyllaceae |
| Genus: | Asterophora |
| Species: | A. lycoperdoides
|
| Binomial name | |
| Asterophora lycoperdoides (Bull.) Ditmar
| |
| Synonyms[1] | |
|
Species synonymy
| |
| Asterophora lycoperdoides | |
|---|---|
| Gills on hymenium | |
| Cap is convex | |
| Hymenium attachment is irregular or not applicable | |
| Stipe is bare | |
| Spore print is white | |
| Ecology is parasitic | |
| Edibility is inedible | |
Asterophora lycoperdoides, commonly known as the star bearer, or powdery piggyback mushroom,[2] is a species of fungus in the Lyophyllaceae family. It grows as a parasite, mostly on Russula species, and is found in North America.
Taxonomy
The species was first named as Agaricus lycoperdonoides by French mycologist Jean Baptiste Francois Pierre Bulliard in 1784.
Description
The cap is white but soon covered in brown powder, growing up to 2 centimetres (3⁄4 in) wide.[3] The gills are adnate and fairly distant, sometimes forked. The stems are up to 5 cm (2 in) long.[3]
Asexual spores are produced on the mushrooms cap which enable the organism to clone itself easily. The spores are star-shaped, hence the name 'star bearer'. It is regarded as nonpoisonous but inedible.[4][5]
Asterophora parasitica is similar but has more conic caps.[6]
Habitat and distribution
It grows as a parasite on other mushrooms, mainly those in the genus Russula.[3] It can be found from July to September in eastern North America, somewhat later on the on the West Coast.[3]
References
- ^ "Asterophora lycoperdoides (Bull.) Ditmar 1809". MycoBank. International Mycological Association. Retrieved 2010-12-23.
- ^ "Asterophora lycoperdoides, Powdery Piggyback mushroom". first-nature.com. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
- ^ a b c d Audubon (2023). Mushrooms of North America. Knopf. p. 504. ISBN 978-0-593-31998-7.
- ^ Miller Jr., Orson K.; Miller, Hope H. (2006). North American Mushrooms: A Field Guide to Edible and Inedible Fungi. Guilford, CN: FalconGuide. p. 134. ISBN 978-0-7627-3109-1.
- ^ Phillips, Roger (2010) [2005]. Mushrooms and Other Fungi of North America. Buffalo, NY: Firefly Books. pp. 92–93. ISBN 978-1-55407-651-2.
- ^ Trudell, Steve; Ammirati, Joe (2009). Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest. Timber Press Field Guides. Portland, OR: Timber Press. pp. 305–306. ISBN 978-0-88192-935-5.