Agaricus sp. (Agaricus)
The fruit body is a mushroom with a cap atop a central stem. Caps come in various colours, are convex to flat; smooth, fibrillose or scaly; dry; from a centimetre or so to well over 10 centimetres in diameter. Given the size variation in the cap it is not surprising that the stems also vary greatly in size. White is the most common stem colour.
The gills are initially pale pinkish and appear to change colour to dark brown with age, but it is not the gill tissue that is changing colour. Spores are very pale when immature but become dark brown at maturity and it is the mass of mature spores that gives that colour. In some species spores mature early, in others late. Hence, in one species you may see a small, open cap with dark brown gills, but in another species a much larger, open cap but where the gills are still pink.
Technically the gills are described as free. This means that none of the gills reach the stem. What you see immediately around the top of the stem is a narrow circular furrow, as in this photo: http://www.cpbr.gov.au/fungi/images-captions/agaricus-sp-0037.html.
Very few genera have free gills so it is a very informative feature.
Warning: When a mushroom starts drying, the flesh distorts and in those species without free gills, the gills may tear away from the stem and appear free. Always be suspicious when you think you’ve seen free gills. Check carefully for signs of tearing, especially if the cap shows any signs of the wrinkling that comes with drying.
There is a partial veil that covers the gills in an immature mushroom. As the cap expands this breaks at the cap margin and leaves a membranous (and often skirt-like) ring of tissue around the stem There is no universal veil. In this photo (http://www.cpbr.gov.au/fungi/images-captions/agaricus-broken-veil-0036.html) you see a skirt-like veil remnant. The earlier photo shows a smaller ring.
Spore print: chocolate brown.
The mushrooms appear on the ground in a wide variety of habitats.
Look-alikes
Some species of Agrocybe have partial veils and brown gills – but the gills are not free and the somewhat Agaricus-looking ones are most likely to appear on wood (live or dead).
Agaricus sp. is listed in the following regions:
Canberra & Southern Tablelands | Albury, Wodonga | South Coast | Central West NSW | Hume
1 2
Species information
- Agaricus sp. Scientific name
- Agaricus Common name
- Not Sensitive
- Local native
- Non-invasive or negligible
- Up to 2024.9m Recorded at altitude
- Machine learning
- External link More information
Location information
-
Maps
ANBG ANU Ellery Precinct ANU Liversidge Precinct Australian National University Banksia Street Wetland Corridor Bicentennial Park Broulee Moruya Nature Observation Area Budjan Galindji (Franklin Grassland) Reserve Bungonia National Park Callum Brae City Renewal Authority Area Commonwealth & Kings Parks Crace Grasslands Dryandra St Woodland Dunlop Grasslands Gibraltar Pines Gidleigh TSR Giralang Wetlands Goorooyarroo NR (ACT) Goulburn Mulwaree Council Gungahlin Pond Haig Park Hughes Garran Woodland Illilanga & Baroona Isaacs Ridge Isaacs Ridge and Nearby Jerrabomberra Grassland Jerrabomberra Wetlands Kosciuszko National Park Lake Burley Griffin West Lake Ginninderra Lower Molonglo Lyneham Wetland Mount Ainslie Mount Ainslie to Black Mountain Mount Majura Mount Mugga Mugga Mount Painter Mulligans Flat Namadgi National Park Red Hill Nature Reserve Red Hill to Yarralumla Creek Sullivans Creek, Acton Sullivans Creek, Lyneham South Sullivans Creek, O'Connor Sullivans Creek, Turner Tallaganda National Park Tallaganda State Forest Tharwa Bridge The Pinnacle Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve Top Hut TSR Tumut State Forest Umbagong District Park Wodonga Woodstock Nature Reserve WREN Reserves -
Survey points
GG105 -
Places
Baranduda, VIC Conder, ACT Cowra, NSW Dry Plain, NSW Uriarra Village, ACT Yackandandah, VIC
