Helvella maculata

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by Michael Kuo

Helvella maculata is a western species that features an elaborately ribbed and pocketed stem, a brownish cap that is loosely lobed, and a fuzzy, whitish under surface. It appears under conifers and hardwoods from Alaska to California--usually in fall, but also over winter or in spring in coastal areas.

Edibility is not known for Helvella maculata; do not experiment.

Description:

Ecology: Saprobic or, potentially, mycorrhizal; growing alone or gregariously under conifers (especially spruces and Douglas-Fir) or under hardwoods (especially Quaking Aspen and other poplars); fall (also winter and spring in coastal areas); Alaska to California, inland to Alberta.

Cap: 1-4.5 cm; vaguely saddle-shaped or irregularly lobed; at first strongly inrolled; slightly wavy or wrinkled; upper surface brown, sometimes mottled with whitish areas; under surface whitish, densely fuzzy; the margin not usually fusing with the stem where contact occurs.

Flesh: Thin; brittle; often chambered in the stem.

Stem: 2-12 cm long; up to 3 cm wide; whitish; deeply and ornately ribbed, with cross-veins and pockets.

Microscopic Features: Spores 18-23 x 11-14 µ; elliptical; smooth; with one large oil droplet. Paraphyses with slightly to prominently swollen tips. Asci to 300 x 20 µ.

REFERENCES: Weber, 1975. (Weber, 1975; Arora, 1986; Abbott & Currah, 1997; Treibs, 2001.)

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Cite this page as:

Kuo, M. (2006, April). Helvella maculata. Retrieved from the MushroomExpert.Com Web site: http://www.mushroomexpert.com/helvella_maculata.html