Devil's Dipstick

Appearance

The young fruiting bodies are initially white and spherical or egg-shaped, partially submerged in the ground, with dimensions of 2 to 3 cm by 1 to 2 cm . As the fruit body matures, the egg ruptures and the spongy spore-bearing stalk emerges; fully grown, it may be from 1 to 15 cm long and 1.5 to 2 cm thick. The stalk is hollow and strongly wrinkled overall; its shape is cylindrical below, but it gradually tapers to a narrow apex with a small opening at the tip. The upper half of the stalk is bright red to reddish orange, and the color gradually loses intensity transforming into pinkish white below. The stalk may be straight, or slightly curved. A gelatinous greenish-brown gleba covers the upper third of the stalk in newly emerged specimens. The remains of the "egg" forms a volva around the base of the stalk. The odor of the gleba is foul; one author describes it as "sickly sweet or metallic". The spores are a greenish-brown color. Fruit bodies are attached to the substrate by whitish rhizomorphs that resemble plant roots. American mycologist Smith noted that the eggs are often slow to open, sometimes taking up to two weeks before the stalk expands.

The spores are 4–7 by 2–3 µm, oblong-elliptical, smooth, and embedded in the gleba. A 1982 study revealed that spores of species in the Phallaceae family, including ''Mutinus elegans'', have a hilar scar that is observable with scanning electron microscopy. The hilar scar is a circular indentation at one end of the spore, and it most likely results during the separation of the attachment of the spore to the sterigma of the basidium.

Naming

The "dog stinkhorn" is smaller, has a distinct oval or spindle-shaped tip on a slender stem and lacks the bright coloring of ''M. elegans''; it has less of the stalk covered by gleba. The portion of the stalk below the spore mass is pitted in ''M. caninus'', compared to "pebbly" in ''M. elegans''. ''M. caninus'' is also less common than ''M. elegans''. ''Mutinus bambusinus'' is similar in size and shape, except it does not have a distinct color demarcation between the upper and lower parts of the stalk; instead, the entire stem shows red pigments. The stalk of ''M. ravenelii'' is less tapered than ''M. elegans'', and it has a clearly differentiated swollen head.

Distribution

This common species has been collected in eastern North America, in the area extending from Quebec to Florida and west to the Great Lakes, Iowa, and Texas.
In Europe, it has been reported from Netherlands and in Asia, it has been collected in Japan.

Habitat

''Mutinus elegans'' is saprobic—deriving nutrients by breaking down dead or dying organic matter. It is commonly found in gardens and farm areas enriched with manure, near well-decayed stumps and logs, and in wood chips. A Japanese publication mentioned its occurrence in Takatsuki and Osaka-fu, where it fruited in November and December on the ground along paths or in open spaces, under or near bamboo and hardwoods such as the Sawtooth Oak, the ''Japanese Zelkova'', and the ''Camphor tree''.