Botany: Fungus. Hongos. Funji: Clitocybe. Part 1

Clitocybe geotropa

Clitocybe nebulari

Clitocybe Odora

Clitocybe nebularis

Clitocybe albirhiza

Clitocybe

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hundreds of species of mushrooms compose the fungus genus Clitocybe. They are characterized by white, off-white, buff, cream, pink, or light-yellow spores, gills running down the stem, and pale white to brown or lilac coloration. They are primarily saprotrophic, decomposing forest ground litter.

A few members of the genus are considered edible; many others are poisonous, containing the toxin muscarine among others. Distinguishing individual species of Clitocybe is generally prohibitively difficult to non-experts, requiring the analysis of microscopic characters. Therefore, with the exception of a few charismatic and readily identified members, Clitocybe mushrooms are rarely collected for consumption.

Recent molecular work has shown the genus to be polyphyletic, with many members seemingly distantly related and other fungi, such as the field blewit and wood blewit, now known as Clitocybe saeva and C. nuda respectively, are more closely related. As C. nebularis is the type species^[2], those most distantly related to it would be likely to be reclassified in the future.

Toxicity

The consumption of two species, Clitocybe acromelalga from Japan,^[3] and Clitocybe amoenolens from France,^[4] has led to several cases of mushroom-induced erythromelalgia which lasted from 8 days to 5 months.^[5]

Many small Clitocybe species contain the toxin muscarine, which was originally found in small amounts in the famous fly agaric. However, the small white Clitocybe species contain muscarine in dangerous amounts, and two species in particular, the closely related Clitocybe dealbata and Clitocybe rivolusa, contain muscarine in deadly amounts, and deaths have been recorded for eating those two Clitocybe species.

[edit] List of species

• Clitocybe acromelalga (Japan)
• Clitocybe alexandri
• Clitocybe amoenolens - poisonous bamboo mushroom (France)
• Clitocybe brumalis — Winter Funnel Cap
• Clitocybe candicans
• Clitocybe candida
• Clitocybe cerussata
• Clitocybe clavipes — may be edible but poisonous when consumed in conjunction with alcohol
• Clitocybe dealbata — Ivory Funnel, Sweating mushroom (Europe), poisonous
• Clitocybe ditopus
• Clitocybe dilata
• Clitocybe eccentrica
• Clitocybe entoloma
• Clitocybe eucalyptorum
• Clitocybe flaccida
• Clitocybe fragrans
• Clitocybe geotropa
• Clitocybe gibba
• Clitocybe gigantea (=Leucopaxillus giganteus)
• Clitocybe glacialis
• Clitocybe glutiniceps
• Clitocybe maxima
• Clitocybe nebularis — Clouded agaric - considered edible by some, though causes gastric upset in many people
• Clitocybe nuda — Wood blewit — a common edible distinguished in part by its lilac hue
• Clitocybe odora — Aniseed toadstool; grows near birch trees, but can be easily mistaken for poisonous ones mainly because of its appearance
• Clitocybe rivulosa - Fool's Funnel (Europe, North America)
• Clitocybe sclerotoidea
• Clitocybe squamulosa
• Clitocybe truncicola
• Clitocybe vibecina

The bioluminescent jack o'lantern mushroom (Omphalotus olearius) was formerly placed in this genus as Clitocybe illudens.