Clitocybe robusta

[Basidiomycetes > Agaricales > Tricholomataceae > Clitocybe...]

by Michael Kuo

Clitocybe robusta is a medium-sized to large (but not giant) white species with a cap that does not become deeply vase-shaped; in fact the caps are often distorted as a result of the clustered growth habit. Its spore print is pale yellowish, and it has a sickly, foul odor. Other identifying features include the inrolled cap margin, the broadly attached gills, and microscopic features (see below).

Clitocybe robusta should not be eaten--and its foul taste is a deterrent, anyway.

Description:

Ecology: Saprobic; growing in dense clusters under hardwoods or conifers, often on disturbed ground (along road banks and paths, etc.); summer and fall; widely distributed in North America.

Cap: 3-17 cm; convex, flat, shallowly depressed, or irregular and distorted; dry; satiny; white to dirty buff; the margin inrolled at first and later wavy.

Gills: Broadly attached to the stem or beginning to run down it; close or crowded; white or buff.

Stem: 4-10 cm long; up to 3.5 cm thick; more or less equal, or enlarged downwards; dry; fairly smooth, or with tiny fibers; white to cream.

Flesh: White; thick.

Odor and Taste: Sickly sweetish-foul.

Chemical Reactions: KOH on cap surface negative.

Spore Print: Pale yellowish.

Microscopic Details: Spores 5-8 x 3-5 µ; more or less elliptical; smooth; inamyloid. Cystidia absent. Clamp connections present.

REFERENCES: Peck, 1896. (Saccardo, 1899; Smith, 1973; Smith, Smith & Weber, 1979; Bigelow, 1982; Phillips, 1991/2005.) Herb. Kuo 08140306, 08060505.

Clitocybe alba is a synonym. According to some authors (e.g. Kuyper, 1995), Clitocybe nebularis var. alba is also a synonym; see the linked page for more information.

Further Online Information:

Clitocybe robusta at Roger's Mushrooms

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Cite this page as:

Kuo, M. (2008, April). Clitocybe robusta. Retrieved from the MushroomExpert.Com Web site: http://www.mushroomexpert.com/clitocybe_robusta.html