Stinking Dapperling

Appearance

The fruit body produced by "Lepiota cristata" has a cap with a white to cream base colour, covered with concentrically arranged reddish-brown scales; at maturity the cap diameter ranges from 1–5 cm across. The center of the cap is a darker reddish-brown than the rest of the cap. The cap is initial bell-shaped to convex, then later flattens out and develops an umbo.

The crowded gills of "Lepiota cristata" are white to cream, free from attachment to the stipe, and darken/become brownish as the mushroom ages and the spores mature. The stipe is usually between 2–6 cm, and 0.2–0.7 cm thick. With a stipe which is nearly smooth and a pale white-tinged flesh colour, "L. cristata" also has a transient ring, which is membranous and deciduous. The flesh is thin and white.

The dorsal spur on the spores of "Lepiota cristata" gives them a triangular or wedge shape; they measure 7–8.5 by 3–4 µm. These spores are slightly dextrinoid, meaning they stain deep red to reddish brown with the application of Melzer's reagent. The cystidia on the gill edge in "L. cristata" are club-shaped and measure about 15–25 by 8–14 µm; there are no cystidia on the gill face; the pileipellis is a hymeniform layer of hyphal cells about 30–50 by 10–25 µm. When the spores fall onto a surface, the powdery deposit they leave behind is white, apart from in "L. cristata" var. "viridispora" where the spore print is greyish green, similar to that of false parasol.

"Lepiota cristata" has been described as having a strong, distinctive and unpleasant odour; it has been described as rubbery, fishy, pungent, foul, fungusy, fruity, mealy and sweet. Despite this, "L. cristata" has been described as having a mild and pleasant taste.

Naming

"Lepiota cristata" was first described as "Agaricus cristatus" by the British naturalist James Bolton in his 1788 work "An History of Fungusses, Growing about Halifax". The type collection was made from a garden in Warley Town in 1787. This name remained until 1871 when German mycologist Paul Kummer moved the species into the genus "Lepiota", where it gained its current name, "Lepiota cristata".

MycoBank lists several varieties of "L. cristata". These are:
⤷ "L. cristata" var. "adextrinoidea" E.Valenz. & G.Moreno
⤷ "L. cristata" var. "congolensis" Beeli
⤷ "L. cristata" var. "cristata" P.Kumm.
⤷ "L. cristata" var. "exannulata" Bon
⤷ "L. cristata" var. "felinoides" Bon
⤷ "L. cristata" var. "macrospora" J.F.Liang & Zhu L.Yang
⤷ "L. cristata" var. "pallidior" Boud. ex Bon
⤷ "L. cristata" var. "viridispora" Kyde & J.L.Peterson

"Lepiota cristata" var. "sericea", described from the Netherlands in 1922, is now considered synonymous with "Leucoagaricus sericifer". "L. cristata" var. "exannulata", "L. cristata" var. "felinoides" and "L. cristata" var. "pallidior" may be of an uncertain taxonomic status, as despite being listed as varieties of "L. cristata" the same databases also include these three taxa as synonyms of "L. cristata." "Lepiota castaneidisca" was once considered a synonym of "L. cristata" until molecular analysis showed it to be a distinct species.

The specific epithet "cristata" means "crested". Vernacular names for the mushroom include "malodorous lepiota", ""brown-eyed parasol", the "burnt-rubber lepiota", and the "stinking dappling".Several have been described—in North America, Europe, and Asia—that are similar in appearance and morphology to "Lepiota cristata". Biogeographical evidence suggests that "L. cristata" and similar species may form a widespread species complex with a wide range of variation. It can be confused with other "Lepiota" species, such as "L. ignivolvata", though "L. ignivolvata" can be distinguished from "L. cristata" as it has a ring, bright orange or red-brown in colour, low down on the stipe. The rare, toxic species "L. lilacea" has a morphology similar to "L. cristata" but has purple to purple-brown colours. The lookalike "L. saponella", found on the west coast of France, is distinguished from "L. cristata" by its soapy smell, dingy buff-coloured gills, and smaller scales on the cap surface. Microscopically, its spores are more triangular than those of "L. cristata". "Lepiota cristatanea", a southwestern Chinese species named for its similarity to "L. cristata", has smaller fruit bodies and smaller spores, typically measuring 4.0–5.5 by 2.5–3.0 µm.

Distribution

"Lepiota cristata" is a saprobic species, deriving nutrients through decomposing dead or decayed organic material. saprobic behaviour by "L. cristata" has been observed on the soil of broadleaved and conifer trees. "L. cristata" can be found growing either singly or in small groups and in multiple habitats including woodlands, gardens, garden waste, short grass, leaf litter, paths, ditches, and other areas of disturbed ground.

"Lepiota cristata" is one of the most widely distributed "Lepiota" species, and can be found in North America, throughout Europe, and northern Asia. It is also found in New Zealand.

Habitat

"Lepiota cristata" is a saprobic species, deriving nutrients through decomposing dead or decayed organic material. saprobic behaviour by "L. cristata" has been observed on the soil of broadleaved and conifer trees. "L. cristata" can be found growing either singly or in small groups and in multiple habitats including woodlands, gardens, garden waste, short grass, leaf litter, paths, ditches, and other areas of disturbed ground.

"Lepiota cristata" is one of the most widely distributed "Lepiota" species, and can be found in North America, throughout Europe, and northern Asia. It is also found in New Zealand.

Defense

Whilst it is unknown for sure whether "Lepiota cristata" is poisonous to humans or not, mycologists at least regard it as suspect. This suspicion comes from the fact that many other small species of "Lepiota "are poisonous. It has been said that "L. cristata" causes gastrointestinal symptoms. Up until recently, there was a potentially injurious confusion pertaining to the toxicity of "L. cristata", as in Great Britain dapperlings were commonly referred to as parasols. A parasol mushrooms is one from the parasol family and these are, unlike "L. cristata", edible. This frequent misidentification may have added to the incidence of poisoning.