White Dunce Cap - Conocybe apala
Cap: Conical; whitish; with lines radiating from center to margin
Gills: Cinnamon-brown; close
Stem: White; fuzzy; fragile
Habitat: Growing in grass beside a pond
*These mushrooms are usually found in the early morning hours because the heat of the day causes the stem to collapse and the cap to shrivel up.
''Conocybe apala'' is a basidiomycete fungus and a member of ''Conocybe''. It is a fairly common fungus, both in North America and Europe, found growing among short green grass. Until recently, the species was also commonly called ''Conocybe lactea'' or ''Conocybe albipes'' and is colloquially known as the White Dunce Cap ....hieroglyph snipped... Another common synonym, ''Bolbitius albipes'' G.H. Otth 1871, places the fungus in the genus ''Bolbitius''.
