Clitocybe violaceifolia

Clitocybe violaceifolia, also known as the western cypress blewit, is a species of gilled mushroom native to western North America. C. violaceifolia can be distinguished from its choice-edible cousin, the wood blewit, by its association with trees in the cypress family. According to California mycologist Alan Rockefeller, C. violaceifolia "smells like mud".[1] These mushrooms are theoretically edible but are reportedly quite unpalatable.[2]

Western cypress blewit
Contra Costa County, California, 2024
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Basidiomycota
Class: Agaricomycetes
Order: Agaricales
Family: Clitocybaceae
Genus: Clitocybe
Species:
C. violaceifolia
Binomial name
Clitocybe violaceifolia
Murrill, 1913
Clitocybe violaceifolia
View the Mycomorphbox template that generates the following list
Cap is convex
Hymenium is adnexed
Stipe is bare
Edibility is edible, but unpalatable

This species was first described by William A. Murrill in 1913 from a type species collected near Salem, Oregon by Morton E. Peck.[3] Murrill's description was "Pileus convex, somewhat gibbous, solitary, 3 cm. broad; surface slightly viscid when moist, smooth, glabrous, grayish-violet tinted with brown at the center, margin entire, slightly paler; lamellae very narrow, adnexed to slightly decurrent, rather crowded, arcuate, pale-violet; spores ellipsoid, smooth, hyaline, 7-8 X 3.5-4.5; stipe equal, fleshy, solid, smooth, glabrous, grayish-violet, mycelioid at the base, 3 cm. long, 6 mm. thick."[3]

The western cypress blewit has been documented in Oregon, California, and Arizona.[4]

References

edit
  1. ^ Rockefeller, Alan (2024-01-23). "Clitocybe violaceifolia". iNaturalist. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
  2. ^ K.A. (2024-02-22). "["Found these blewits under cypress..."]". The California Mushroom Identification Forum (facebook.com). Retrieved 2024-02-24. Katlyn A. [OP]: Found these blewits under cypress and they taste like shit. When I cut into them they even had cypress leaves inside of them.[...] Victoria G.: I ruined a dinner party with blewits from under cypress once! Foul![...] Debbie H.: I had that happen once and I didn't know why.[...] Desiree H.: That's pretty much how they taste, IMO.[...] Aidan H.: So nasty.
  3. ^ a b Murrill, William A. (1913). "The Agaricaceae of the Pacific Coast—IV. New Species of Clitocybe and Melanoleuca". Mycologia. 5 (4). Mycological Society of America, Mycological Society of New York Botanical Garden. Bronx, N.Y.: New York Botanical Garden: 206–223. doi:10.1080/00275514.1913.12018520. ISSN 0027-5514. JSTOR 3753386. LCCN 57051730. OCLC 1640733 – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
  4. ^ "Clitocybe violaceifolia (research-grade observations map)". iNaturalist. Retrieved 2024-02-24.