38 



Mycologia 



who collect fungi for food in the fields limit themselves to this 



one species. 



Pluteus cervinus (SchaefL) Fries 

 Fawn-colored Pluteus 



Plate 3. Figure 2. X 2 



Pileus 6-10 cm. broad, rather thin and fragile, bell-shaped to 

 expanded, smooth or slightly radiate-fibrillose, avellaneous to 

 subfuliginous, rarely white, sometimes streaked ; flesh white, 

 almost tasteless ; gills free, broad, white when young, becoming 

 salmon-pink; spores broadly ellipsoid, smooth, flesh-colored, 

 6-8 X 5-6 fx ; cystidia ellipsoid, stout, thick-walled, hyaline, forked 

 at the tip ; stem equal or enlarged at the base, white above, more 

 like the cap below, usually glabrous, nearly solid, brittle, 8-15 cm. 

 long. 



This edible species occurs quite commonly in open woods about 

 stumps and on decaying wood of various kinds from June to 

 November. The illustrations were made from specimens collected 

 on an old sawdust pile in October, and they show the effect of 

 the cold. 



Coprinus comatus (Muell.) Fries 

 Shaggy-mane 



Plate 3. Figure 3. X \ 



Pileus at first oblong, subcylindrical, 4-6 cm. in diameter, ex- 

 panding and deliquescing with age; surface shaggy, white, with 

 yellowish or brownish scales, tinged with lilac in places, grayish- 

 black on the margin, blackening with age; flesh white, tender, of 

 nutty flavor; gills crowded, white when young, soon changing 

 to pink, then to black, and finally melting away into an inky 

 fluid; spores ellipsoid, black, 13-16 n; ring white, small, movable 

 or slightly adhering, often falling away at an early stage; stem 

 slender, smooth, white, hollow, 7-12 cm. long. 



The shaggy-mane is a very conspicuous object on lawns in 

 autumn, although it is not so abundant as might be desired. On 

 account of its peculiar shape and decided colors, a single speci- 

 men rarely fails to attract attention. It is considered one of the 

 very best of the edible fungi, and is often eaten raw by foreigners. 



