View A43-1112-1979-eng.pdf

COPRINUS
COPRINUS ATRAMENTARIUS (Bull, ex Fr.) Fr. Edible
Figures 390, 391, page 286
Inky Cap
PILEUS 1-3 in. broad, occasionally larger, at first ovoid, then expanding to
conic or campanulate, gray to brownish on disk, often lobed and folded, some-
what silky-fibrous, smooth or sometimes squamulose, becoming tattered on
the margin in age. flesh thin, lamellae free, crowded, broad, at first white,
becoming black and then dissolving into an inky fluid, stipe 2-8 in. long,
Ya-Ya
annulus, white and silky above, hollow, annulus usually toward the base of
in. thick, equal or narrowed at the base, somewhat fibrillose below the
the stipe, very evanescent, spores black, eUiptical, smooth, 8-11 X 5-6.5 /x-
Usually in clusters on the ground or in sawdust, apparently associated
with buried wood. July-Sept.
This species is common and often appears in dense clusters. It is consid-
ered a very desirable edible species for the young pilei are firm and meaty.
Usually the gray pilei are smooth but, especially under dry conditions, may
become more or less scaly from the splitting of the cuticle. Coprinus insignis
Peck is somewhat similar in appearance, but has rough spores.
COPRINUS COMATUS (Mull, ex Fr.) S. F. Gray Edible
Figure 301, page 195; Figures 392, 393, page 287
Shaggy Mane
PILEUS cyHndrical or barrel-shaped, 2-6 in. long and 1-2 in. thick, grad-
ually expanding and becoming somewhat conical to bell-shaped, at first cov-
ered with a brownish or ochraceous brown cuticle which becomes torn into
shaggy scales except on the disk, exposing the white to pinkish flesh, margin
becoming split and recurved, flesh thin, soft and fragile, lamellae nearly free,
very crowded, broad, at first white, becoming pinkish and then black, gradually
dissolving into an inky fluid starting at the margin of the pileus. stipe 2-6 in.
long, J4-% in. thick, equal or tapering upward, shghtly bulbous at the base,
smooth, hollow, annulus movable, usually basal, spores black, elliptical,
smooth, 13-18 X 7-8 m-
Common along roadsides, in city dumps, fields, or on lawns. It may be
found at any time during the growing season, but is more common in the fall.
The shaggy mane is one of the most easily recognized mushrooms and
probably one of those most frequently used for food. It might be confused with
Coprinus ovatus Fr. or C. sterquilinus Fr. The former is more ovate than
cyHndrical in shape and has smaller spores, whereas the latter is usually
smaller, becomes more expanded than C. comatus, and has larger spores.
Since both of these species are also edible a misidentification is of no con-
sequence.
211