Major Groups > Gilled Mushrooms > Pale-Spored

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Key to Pale-Spored, Gilled Mushrooms  


by Michael Kuo



1.Spore print greenish.
2

1.Spore print not greenish.
3


2.Growing under conifers; gills well spaced, running down the stem, typically blackening by maturity; partial veil disappearing by maturity or leaving a thin ring zone.

2.Growing in lawns and meadows; gills close or crowded, not running down the stem, greenish at maturity; partial veil leaving a persistent ring on the stem.


3.Mushroom with a universal veil and/or a tissue-like to cob-webby or slimy partial veil (check "buttons" and young specimens to be sure)
4

3.Mushroom with neither a partial veil nor a universal veil.
17


4.Gills free from the stem at maturity, or nearly so.
5

4.Gills broadly to narrowly attached to the stem, notched, or running down the stem.
7


5.Universal veil slimy, not leaving a volva, patches, or warts; cap slimy when fresh and young; stem often slimy, or with a sheathed appearance; odor often mealy.

5.Not as above.
6


6.With a universal veil that leaves a volva, concentric rings, a rim, or flaky patches at the base of the stem (a few species lack distinct volval remnants on the stem base; the most common and wide-spread of these have tissues that blush reddish to pinkish when bruised or in age); many species with warts or patches (though others have smooth caps); with a ring on the stem—or, if without a ring, typically with a strongly lined cap margin; spores amyloid or inamyloid, never dextrinoid.

6.Without a universal veil that leaves a volva, concentric rings, or flaky patches on the stem base; not blushing reddish to pinkish when bruised—or, if blushing reddish, then the cap typically with scales rather than easily removed warts or patches; spores often dextrinoid, never amyloid.


7.Gill edges conspicuously serrated or toothed.
Lentinus

7.Gill edges not conspicuously serrated.
8


8.Cap and stem both covered with powdery granules when young and fresh; spores amyloid or inamyloid, but not dextrinoid; pileipellis featuring chained, inflated elements.

8.Cap and stem not covered with powdery granules; microscopic features variable.
9


9.Growing on wood.
10

9.Growing on the ground.
13


10.Gills running well down the stem; mushroom whitish and fuzzy overall, bruising and discoloring yellowish.

10.Not completely as above.
11


11.Cap and stem densely covered with well developed, reddish brown scales (reminiscent of some species of Pholiota); spores amyloid; growing in eastern North America.

11.Not with the above combination of features.
12


12.Growing gregariously on hardwood logs along the Gulf Coast; cap whitish under small, brown scales (reminscent of Lepiota cristata); spores finely warty.

12.Not completely as above.


13.Stem bulbous, with yellow shades on the bulb and the ring; often growing in clusters; cap tan to tawny brown, with yellowish hairs; white partial veil remnants on cap margin.

13.Not completely as above.
14


14.Cap large (10–40 cm across) and firm, whitish to dingy brown or grayish; gills running down the stem or beginning to do so; stem tapered, rooting (sometimes almost completely buried); ring sturdy and double-layered; growing under conifers; spores amyloid.

14.Not completely as above.
15


15.Growing under mountain mahogany; cap covered with large, wart-like scales; stem bulbous; spores inamyloid.

15.Not completely as above.
16


16.Western in distribution; spores amyloid.

16.Western and eastern in distribution; spores inamyloid.


17.Fresh, young mushrooms producing a white, colorless, or colored "milk" or juice when injured (best observed by damaging the gills with a knife point, or by slicing the mushroom in half).

17.Not producing a milk or juice when injured.
18


18.Flesh white, crumbly, and brittle; stem usually snapping like a piece of chalk; cap often about as wide as the stem is long, broadly convex to flat to shallowly vase-shaped when mature (never conical); gills not often waxy; spore print white, creamy, yellowish, or orangish; spores with amyloid ornamentation.

18.Not as above.
19


19.Gills often waxy, thick, and well spaced (but if gills are flesh-colored or purplish, see also Laccaria); many species white or brightly colored (but many also gray to brown or black); cap often sticky to slimy when young and fresh; many species partial to colder weather, fruiting in spring or fall in north-temperate zones, or winter in warmer climates; growing from the ground; spores inamyloid (very rarely amyloid); basidia often elongated (more than 35 µm long).

19.Not as above.
20


20.Growing on wood.
21

20.Growing on the ground, in leaf litter, in conifer duff, or on cones or nuts.
38


21.Gill edges conspicuously serrated or "toothed."
22

21.Gill edges not serrated.
23


22.Mushroom large and tough; cap scaly; growing from the wood of western North American conifers; spores inamyloid.

22.Mushroom small to medium in size; cap scaly or not; habitat and distribution varying; spores amyloid


23.Stem lateral, off-center, or absent (occasionally central when growing on top of a log).
24

23.Stem present and central.
25


24.Cap rubbery.

24.Cap not rubbery.


25.Cap and stem with a dense layer of hairs; stem hard, slender, and dark; usually growing on sticks or small logs.
Collybioid Mushrooms
see couplets 19-21, Crinipellis

25.Not as above.
26


26.Mushrooms medium-sized; growing in dense clusters on hardwoods (or from buried roots) in eastern North America; stem bases fused; caps brownish to yellowish; stems long and slender, whitish above and grayish to brownish below; gills whitish to pinkish, just beginning to run down the stem.

26.Not completely as above.
27


27.Caps bright yellow to orangish yellow or dull yellow, very small (under 3 cm across), dry and granular (at least when young); gills distant; spores lemon-shaped, inamyloid.

27.Not completely as above.
28


28.Growing in clusters on the deadwood of hardwoods from roughly Iowa to New York; caps medium-sized, bright yellow, with a central depression; gills white, running almost entirely down the stem.

28.Not completely as above.
29

add 1 below



29.Stem with a layer of orange to tawny hairs at the base; growing densely gregariously (often with hundreds of mushrooms present); cap small, flat to depressed, or with a small bump (but never conical), often with a lined margin; gills yellow to orange.

29.Not as above.
30


30.Gills running down the stem; mushroom medium-sized or large, growing in clusters with stem bases tapered; cap some shade of orange or yellow.
Omphalotus
see Clitocyboid Mushrooms

30.Not as above.
31


31.Mushroom fairly small and fragile; stem thin (less than 0.5 cm), usually hollow and not tough or wiry; cap usually conical or bell-shaped (not often convex or flat); margin or entire cap frequently lined to pleated when moist; many species growing in clusters.

31.Not as above.
32


32.Cap rubbery and slimy when fresh and young; stem finely velvety, the fuzz becoming dark brown to black with maturity.
Collybioid Mushrooms
see couplets 40-42, Flammulina

32.Not as above.
33


33.Stem base often attached to long, white mycelial cords; cap radially streaked, medium-sized to large, grayish brown to olive brown or brown; gills attached to stem but not running down it; stem white.

33.Not as above.
34


34.Gills running down the stem; cap usually small, often orangish, yellowish, brownish, or black.

34.Gills not running down the stem.
35


35.Flesh (and often the gills) yellow or yellowish.
Tricholomopsis & Callistosporium
keyed with collybioid mushrooms

35.Flesh white or whitish (or insubstantial and grayish, watery brown, etc.); gills variously colored.
36


36.Stem tough and hard or wiry; cap convex, tiny or small (usually under 3 cm across); dried-out mushrooms regaining their previous appearance when placed in water; some tiny species with gills attached by means of a "collar" around the stem.

36.Not as above.
37


37.Cap convex, with an unlined margin; either A) cap evenly whitish; growing alone or in pairs from the wounds of living elms or box elders; or B) cap whitish but mottled; growing in clusters on various trees.
Hypsizygus
see Hypsizygus tessulatus

37.Not as above.


38.Growing in dense clusters under hardwoods in eastern North America; stem bases fused; caps medium-sized, brownish to yellowish; stems long and slender, whitish above and grayish to brownish below; gills whitish to pinkish; spores smooth, ellipsoid, and inamyloid.

38.Not completely as above.
39


39.Gills yellowish orange to bright orange, repeatedly forked, running down the stem; cap surface soft to the touch; at least some spores dextrinoid.

39.Not completely as above.
40


40.Gills thick, often distant, flesh-colored to purplish, attached to the stem but not often running down it; cap some shade of brown, light brown, orange brown, reddish brown, reddish, orangish, or purplish (but often fading to whitish); stem tough.

40.Not as above.
41


41.Cap gray, grayish brown, or blackish; stem and flesh bruising and discoloring grayish, bluish gray, or blackish; stem cartilaginous (not soft, thick, and fleshy).
Lyophyllum

41.Not as above.
42


42.Stem slender (less than 0.5 cm in width).
43

42.Stem greater than 0.5 cm in width.
49


43.Mushroom tiny; growing on pine cones or magnolia cones.
Collybioid Mushrooms
(see couplets 12-15)

43.Not as above.
44


44.Mushroom small and fragile; stem usually hollow and not tough or wiry; cap usually conical or bell-shaped (not often convex or flat); margin or entire cap frequently lined to pleated when moist.

44.Not as above.
45


45.Cap often with a central "belly button" by maturity, often orangish or yellowish; gills usually running down the stem, often yellow, orange, or pinkish; stem thin and cartilaginous; many species growing with lichens, mosses, or grass.

45.Not as above.
46


46.Gills usually running down the stem by maturity; cap convex, flat, or shallowly depressed to vase-shaped; stem fleshy (not tough, cartilaginous, or differently textured than the cap); some species with a sweet or anise-like odor; most species featuring white, brownish, yellowish brown, or purplish colors; cystidia usually absent (or, if present, boring).

46.Not as above.
47


47.Stem tough and hard or wiry; cap convex, tiny or small (usually under 3 cm across); dried-out mushrooms regaining their previous appearance when placed in water; often binding leaf litter or conifer duff; some tiny species with gills attached by means of a "collar" around the stem.

47.Not as above.
48


48.Cap soon more or less flat; stem usually tough, narrow, and straight; spores with small amyloid warts; distinctive cystidia often present.

48.Not as above.


49.Mature cap huge (like, between a foot and a yard across!); found in Florida, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America; stem with prominent brownish scales by maturity; cap brownish to whitish.

49.Not as above.
50


50.Cap dry and unpolished; margin usually inrolled when young; gills attached to the stem or running down it, usually separable from the cap as a layer (illustration); flesh tough; stem terminating in a prominent mass of white mycelial material; odor often foul or mealy; taste sometimes bitter; spores amyloid; spiny.

50.Not as above.
51


51.Growing in dense clusters, usually in areas where the ground has been disturbed (roadbeds, paths, landscaping areas, etc.); cap medium-sized, white to brown or grayish; spores inamyloid and round or nearly so (or if ellipsoid then cap is white).

51.Not as above.
52


52.Gills running down the stem or broadly attached to it; cap convex or flat—or, often, shallowly depressed to vase-shaped; stem fleshy (not tough, cartilaginous, or differently textured than the cap); some species with a sweet or anise-like odor; most species featuring white, brownish, yellowish brown, or purplish colors (but a few are orange). Cystidia absent—or, if present, boring.

52.Not as above.
53


53.Cap gray, grayish brown, or blackish; stem and flesh bruising and discoloring grayish, bluish gray, or blackish; stem cartilaginous (not soft and fleshy).
Lyophyllum

53.Not as above.
54


54.Cap soon more or less flat; stem usually tough, narrow, and straight; spores with small amyloid warts; distinctive cystidia often present.

54.Not as above.
55


55.Stem base often attached to long, white mycelial cords; cap radially streaked, medium-sized to large, grayish brown to olive brown or brown; gills attached to stem but not running down it; stem white.

55.Not as above.
56


56.Cap size small to medium; gills usually not notched; stem cartilaginous or somewhat fleshy.

56.Cap size medium to large; gills usually notched at point of attachment to stem; stem fleshy.
57


57.Spores inamyloid.

57.Spores amyloid.
58


58.Flesh staining red when sliced; cap gray; spores 7–9 µm long.
Pseudotricholoma umbrosum

58.Flesh not staining red; cap dull orangish to pale tan; spores 3–5.5 µm long.


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Cite this page as:

Kuo, M. (2020, July). Key to pale-spored, gilled mushrooms. Retrieved from the MushroomExpert.Com Web site: http://www.mushroomexpert.com/gilled_pale.html

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