| Major Groups > Gilled Mushrooms > Pale-Spored > Omphalinoid > Xeromphalina kauffmanii |
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Xeromphalina kauffmanii [ Basidiomycetes > Agaricales > Tricholomataceae > Xeromphalina . . . ] by Michael Kuo This tiny mushroom often fruits in stunning numbers on stumps and dead logs in hardwood forests, as the bottom illustration demonstrates. It has a white spore print, gills that run down the length of the stem, and a wiry stem that is yellow above, and brownish below. On close inspection, the gills are connected by many cross-veins--one of the defining features of the genus Xeromphalina. The very similar Xeromphalina campanella fruits on conifer wood and has larger spores. Edibility is not known for Xeromphalina kauffmanii, but it is much too small to consider as an edible, anyway. Description: Ecology: Saprobic on the dead wood of hardwoods; growing in dense clusters (sometimes by the hundreds!) on stumps and logs; spring and summer; widely distributed in eastern North America. Cap: .5-2.5 cm; convex to broadly convex or flat overall, but with a deep central depression; smooth; lined or pleated on the margin; brownish yellow, rusty, or yellowish, paler towards the margin; fading. Gills: Running down the stem; more or less distant; with many cross-veins; pale yellow. Stem: 1-4 cm long; 1-2 mm thick; more or less equal; rusty yellow above, darker brown below; smooth or finely hairy; rather wiry. Flesh: Insubstantial. Taste: Mild; odor not distinctive. Spore Print: White. Microscopic Features: Spores 5-6 x 3 µ; elliptical; smooth; amyloid. REFERENCES: Smith, 1953. (Smith, Smith & Weber, 1979; Arora, 1986.) Herb. Kuo 05299502, 08270204, 05130301. Further Online Information: Xeromphalina kauffmanii at Tom Volk's Fungi |
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Cite this page as: Kuo, M. (2002, September). Xeromphalina kauffmanii. Retrieved from the MushroomExpert.Com Web site: http://www.mushroomexpert.com/xeromphalina_kauffmanii.html |