94 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



NEW YORK SPECIES OF PSILOCYBE 



Psilocybe Fr. 



Pileus more or less fleshy, glabrous, the margin at first incurved ; 

 lamellae brown or purplish brown, not decurrent; stem subcarti- 

 laginous, rigid or tenacious, tubular, either hollow or stuffed, often 

 radicating; veil absent or rudimentary, not forming a membrane; 

 spores either brown or purplish brown. 



The genus has been divided into two sections characterized as 

 follows : 



Rigidae. Pileus thin, not pelliculose, hygrophanous, commonly 

 some shade of brown and striatulate when moist, paler when dry ; 

 stem slender, rigid, usually brittle or fragile, glabrous or silky 

 fibrillose, veil none. 



Spadiceae is another name that has been applied to this section. 



Tenaces. Pileus pelliculose, often slightly viscid in wet weather, 

 becoming pale and mostly clear or bright in color ; stem commonly 

 tough flexible, glabrous or silky fibrillose, veil rarely conspicuous. 



Callosae is another name sometimes applied to this section. 



The species of these sections are not in all cases sharply separated 

 from each other. We have included in the genus one species having 

 red spores. 



The absence of an interwoven veil will distinguish species of 

 Psilocybe from those of Hypholoma on one hand, and the incurved 

 margin of the young pileus will separate them from those of 

 Psathyra on the other. Most of the species are terrestrial but a few 

 small ones inhabit wood or fallen decaying leaves. Some occur both 

 on wood and on the ground. 



KEY TO THE SPECIES 



Pileus hygrophanous i 



Pileus not hygrophanous 14 



I Stem tinged with blue caerulipes 



I Stem not tinged with blue 2 



2 Plant growing in sandy soil arenulina 



2 Plant not growing in sandy soil 3 



3 Pileus rugose plicate and atomate atomatoides 



3 Pileus not having these characters 4 



4 Spores red conissans 



4 Spores brown or purplish brown 5 



5 Moist pileus yellow, reddish yellow or brownish 6 



5 Moist pileus alutaceous, reddish brown or chestnut 7 



5 Moist pileus brown, sooty brown or blackish brown 10 



