True or False Parasols?

[SOMV]

Hello,

Can anyone let me know whether these are true or false parasol mushrooms? we found them in the woods. They are very tall, and have discoloured slightly since being kept in the fridge. No green spores as far as I can see, but then I am no expert. When picked yesterday they discoloured to a salmony pink on bruising.

Thank you.

[Fungalpunk]

Red staining signifies False Parasol (Chlorophyllum rhacodes). No snakeskin pattern on the stem too. I always like finding these though.

Fungalpunk dave

[SOMV]

Oh how disappointing! I have spent quite a few hours trying to do some more research about the differences, and have come across quite a few references to similar staining with the true parasol too. It's so confusing.

[fairplay]

Hello SOMV,

First we need to sort out your first opening post - there is no such thing as true and false Parasol, just Parasol (of which there are 1) and Shaggy Parasols
(of which there are several)
You mention no 'green spores' - why should there be ? There is only one species in this group which produces green spores and that is a tiny and rare species called Melanopyllum eyrei and impossible to confuse with the much, much more substantial 'Parasol' types.

The entire stem is an important identifying feature which you have not provided in your photos, but it is safe to say you have one of the Shaggy Parasols and because you mention a salmon/pink colour this would seem to suggest you have the species called Chlorophylum rhacodes.

Neil.

[mollisia]

Originally Posted by fairplay

You mention no 'green spores' - why should there be ? There is only one species in this group which produces green spores and that is a tiny and rare species called Melanopyllum eyrei and impossible to confuse with the much, much more substantial 'Parasol' types.

Hello Neil,

SOMV is right in stating that, because there is a tropical-subtropical species called Chlorophyllum molybdites, which is known from USA (Florida) and throughout the tropics. It is said to be strongly poisonous. O.k, that needs not bother us here? Yes it does, we have had this species last year in a town in South Germany, growing in a garden! So not only the doubtful poisonous Macrolepiota/Chlorophyllum venenata but also the introduced Chlorophyllum molybdites may occure under certain circonstances in our areas!

best regards,
Andreas

[SOMV]

Hi again,

I agree, it was very stupid of me not to have taken the stems.

But, when I was a child we collected these in the Czech forests all the time. Since I never had to worry about identification, I never even suspected that these could be anything but what you call the "shaggy parasol".

However, now that I am picking my own mushrooms, I am being far more careful. This is why I ended up on the internet for hours last night trying to identify whether or not my shaggy parasol is in fact a shaggy parasol.

The reason for thinking twice was an article by a USA based mushroom expert who had made a mistake and failed to distinguish between the shaggy parasol and, as per Andreas' post, the Chlorophyllum molybdites.

The article is here (it is fascinating, even to a novice like myself):
Alan Muskat - Articles - How to not pass up a parasol– and how not to

I understand that the same mushroom species may not occur in the UK, or in fact Europe, but I was worried by the description of the red (although my was a light pink not red) bruising.

I have just ordered a couple of recommended books. I hope these will clear up my confusion in the future.

Thank you for both of your comments.

[fairplay]

There has only been one record of Chlorophyllum molybdites in the UK about 14 years ago, so I never mentioned this.

I forgot you mentioned you came from the Czeck Republic, but you are very unlikely to find this species in Britain, but you are right - better to be safe than sorry, with global warming it may become more frequent in this country.

Neil.

[fairplay]

Since my last post, I checked up the fungal records database and I was correct in that there is only one record, but I assumed it was found in a green house, but in fact it was found in the wild, which is quite alarming.
By chance, I also looked in Phillips where indeed it does say it has been found in greenhouses, suggesting there are more records of this in the UK than just the one on the database (from the wild)

So it is highly probable that since then, this very poisonous species could be spreading further afield, and because it is apparently an identical species to the very popular Macrolepiota procera (when the fruitbody is immature) I am writing this to bring this thread back to the top of the page where hopefully it will get the attention it deserves.

SO TO ALL YOU PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO EAT PARASOLS, PLEASE FAMILIARISE YOURSELF WITH THIS POISONOUS LOOK-A-LIKE. IF ONE HAS BEEN FOUND IN THE WILD IN BRITAIN, I AM SURE THERE WILL BE OTHERS.

Neil.