Fruiting body medium to large. Pileus 4-7cm, cylindrical to sub-cylindrical, slightly convex sides, truncate apex, broadly conical, flattening to plano-convex to applanate, slight central depression; pileus covered with fine granulose squamules in the centre, slightly larger in concentric or scattered patches around the centre that decrease towards the margin; disc entire; disc and squamules brown, turning pinkish to dark brown when handled or damaged; margin sulcate, in some specimens with pieces of annulus adhering. Context 3-4 mm thick, white to off-white. Lamellae free, unequal, close to crowded, ventricose to sub-ventricose, off-white to cream that discolours to brown with age. Stipe 5-10 x 1-1.8 cm, cylindrical, widening downwards, often curved, with slightly bulbous foot, hollow, white to off-white, often with pinkish tones, discolouring to brown when handled. Annulus 3-8mm wide, ascending, with
cuff-like part, whitish above, dark purplish brown on sides and below. Spore print off-white. Edible. Odour indistinct to pleasant sweet. Taste indistinct to slightly astringent. Basidiospores 7.7-9 x 5.9-7 µm, broadly ellipsoid to ellipsoid, with small apical germ pore, hyaline, dextrinoid. Basidia 26.4-30 x 8.2-9.7 µm thin-walled, hyaline, 4 – spored. Cheilocystidia abundant, 40-86 x 6.8-12.8 µm, narrowly lageniform or narrowly clavate with apical extension, with or without rostrate apical extension. Pleurocystidia not observed.
Specimens examined
India, Maharashtra, Kolhapur, Karvir, Koparde, (16°42ʹ05ʺN-74°06ʹ12ʺE), among leaf litter, in cluster 07.11.2020, Bornak, S. I. (Y20V11C4).
Remarks
Leucoagaricus americanus is characterized by large fruiting bodies with sub-bulbous stem which are initially yellow becoming orange-red, followed by vinaceous red to purple brown after cutting. Presence of free, crowded lamellae, ellipsoid basidiospores with small apical germ pore. Leucoagaricus americanus is reported from Idukki and Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala (Verma, et al., 2018) and Pune, Maharashtra (Sathe and Rahalkar, 1976; Sathe and Deshpande, 1982) but as Lepiota americana (Peck.) Sacc. This is a new report from the study area.
References:
Verma, R.K., Vimal, P., Asati, H.L. (2018). Diversity of macro-fungi in Central India-XII: Leucoagaricus rubrotinctus. Van Sangyan. 5(4):2-11
Sathe, A.V. and Rahalkar SR. (1976). Proceedings of Symposium on Survey and Cultivation of edible mushrooms in India, Reg. Research Laboratory, Srinagar, pp. 77-80.
Sathe, A.V. and Deshpande, S. (1982). Agaricales of Maharashtra. In: Advances in Mycology & Plant Pathology: Proceeding[s] of the National Symposium Held at Calcutta on 22nd, 23rd September, 1979, eds. S.B. Chattopadhyay & N. Samajpati, Oxford & IBH Publishing Company, pp. 81-88.
