PAXILLUS. 



I. LEPISTA. 



Paxillus lepista. Fr. 



Pileus 2-4 in. across, flattened or depressed, dirty white, 

 or cream-colour, sometimes minutely cracked or scaly, margin 

 thin, even naked, strongly involute ; gills narrow, rather 

 crowded, decurrent, dingy white, then pale buff, easily sepa- 

 rating from the pileus ; stem 2-4 in. long, ^ in. or more thick, 

 solid, flesh compact white, dingy white or cream-colour, with 

 a separable cartilaginous cuticle that passes continuously 

 between the gills and the flesh of the pileus ; spores dingy, 

 broadly pyritbrm, 6 X 8 p.. 



Paxillus lepista, Fries, Hym. Ear., p. 402; Cke., Hdbk., 

 p. 285; Cke., Illustr., t. 872. 



On the ground, usually in woods. Distinguished from 

 the large white species of Clitocybe by the strongly involute 

 margin of the pileus and the dingy gills and spores. 



Stem solid, compact, spongy-elastic, at length hollow, due 

 to insect larvae, sometimes short, 1 in. or a little more, 

 attenuated downwards, sometimes 34 in. long, equal, base 

 always praemorse, | in. thick and more, whitish, sometimes 

 tinged rufous or brownish, base white, villose. Cuticle of 

 stem rather horny, contiguous with and similar to the 

 hymenophore. Pileus sometimes (young) compact, fleshy, 

 then (when old) thin, 3-4 in. and more broad, piano-depressed, 

 obtuse, not striate, but towards the margin torn into 

 squamules, dry, dirty white, the involute margin commonly 

 undulately flexuous. Flesh white. Gills deeply decurrent, 

 slightly branched, but simple at the base, 2-3 lines broad, 

 crowded, entire, dirty white becoming darker. Spores pallid 

 reddish brown. Smell like meal, rather rancid. (Fries.) 



Paxillus Alexandri. Fr. 



Pileus 2-3 in. across, flesh thick, compact, plane then 

 depressed, margin strongly involute, dry, unpolished, fawn- 

 colour or dingy yellowish-white, the margin when expanded 

 faintly striate ; gills decurrent, crowded, 1 line broad, honey- 

 colour; stem f-1 in. long, |- in. thick, solid, whitish; 

 spores pip-shaped, 7-8 x 4 /n." 



Paxillus Alexandri, Fries, Hym. Eur., p. 401 ; Cke., Hdbk., 

 p. 379; Cke., Illustr., pi. 1162. 



