Green-gilled Lepiota Chlorophyllum molybdites (G. May.) Massee (illustrated 35% life size) Cap 5–30cm across, hemispherical to broadly convex, becoming flatter; whitish underneath, covered with thin layers of pale pinkish-buff volval tissue, breaking up into many small scales and patches as the cap expands; dry, smooth or minutely hairy below, with scales curling up with age. Stem 50–250×8–25mm, sometimes enlarging towards the base; whitish, slowly becoming dingy grey; smooth. Flesh white, discolouring dingy red when bruised; thick; smell faint or slightly pungent. Gills free, close, broad; whitish, slowly becoming dirty grey-green or darker. Spores 8–13×6.5–8¼, ovoid or ellipsoid, with a small germ pore at the tip, smooth, thick-walled. Spore print greenish. Pleurocystidia absent. Habitat occasionally found in heated greenhouses. Poisonous can be confused with edible Macrolepiota species. Note this is a mushroom of tropical and warm areas, including the southern United States. I have included it because it is a poisonous species often eaten in error by Europeans when travelling. The main characteristic distinguishing it from the Macrolepiotas is the green tinge developed by the white gills as they age.
