Calvatia cyathiformis
Encyclopedia
Calvatia cyathiformis, or Purple-spored Puffball, is a large edible saprobic species of Calvatia
. This terrestrial puffball
, has purplish or purple-brown spores, which distinguish it from other large Lycoperdales
. It is found mostly in prairie or grasslands of North America, Australia, and probably elsewhere.
with a smooth exoperidium. As it matures it often becomes pear or irregularly-shaped and the exterior skin takes on a dark or silvery colour. As it ages the exterior dries and cracks and the fleshy spore-bearing interior breaks away to be distributed by wind and rain. After the spores completely disperse, "a soft leathery cup-shaped sterile base lightly rooted to the ground remains."
The spores are "3.5-7.5 µ; round, spiny or warty to nearly smooth. Capillitial threads 3-7.5 µ wide; thick-walled; minutely pitted."
The spore mass turns from white to yellow to dull purple or purple-brown at maurity. It is said to be edible until the flesh begins to turn to a tan colour.
in South Australia to Cooktown, on Cape York Peninsula
, as well as in Darwin, Northern Territory
.
Calvatia
Calvatia is a genus of puffball mushrooms which includes the spectacular giant puffball C. gigantea. It was formerly classified within the now-obsolete order Lycoperdales, which, following a restructuring of fungal taxonomy brought about by molecular phylogeny, has been split; the puffballs,...
. This terrestrial puffball
Puffball
A puffball is a member of any of several groups of fungus in the division Basidiomycota. The puffballs were previously treated as a taxonomic group called the Gasteromycetes or Gasteromycetidae, but they are now known to be a polyphyletic assemblage. The distinguishing feature of all puffballs is...
, has purplish or purple-brown spores, which distinguish it from other large Lycoperdales
Lycoperdales
The Lycoperdales are a now outdated order of fungi. The order included some well-known types such as the giant puffball, the earthstars, and other tuberous fungi...
. It is found mostly in prairie or grasslands of North America, Australia, and probably elsewhere.
Description
The fruiting body is 5–20 cm (2–7.9 ) high and/or broad. When young it is relatively smooth and spherical or slightly flattened and purplish or brownish. It has a chocolate-brown or purple-colored glebaGleba
Gleba is the fleshy spore-bearing inner mass of fungi such as the puffball or stinkhorn.The gleba is a solid mass of spores, generated within an enclosed area within the sporocarp. The continuous maturity of the sporogenous cells leave the spores behind as a powdery mass that can be easily blown away...
with a smooth exoperidium. As it matures it often becomes pear or irregularly-shaped and the exterior skin takes on a dark or silvery colour. As it ages the exterior dries and cracks and the fleshy spore-bearing interior breaks away to be distributed by wind and rain. After the spores completely disperse, "a soft leathery cup-shaped sterile base lightly rooted to the ground remains."
The spores are "3.5-7.5 µ; round, spiny or warty to nearly smooth. Capillitial threads 3-7.5 µ wide; thick-walled; minutely pitted."
The spore mass turns from white to yellow to dull purple or purple-brown at maurity. It is said to be edible until the flesh begins to turn to a tan colour.
"To make a meal from most mushrooms, you probably hope to find at least a half dozen to a dozen, depending on the size. The large Calvatia species are special, because one or two at the most will probably be sufficient for a dinner for two. While this puffball does not have a strong flavor of its own, it is still quite good, and its ability to absorb flavors makes it a rewarding find."
Distribution in Australia
This is a common puffball in grazing paddocks and grassed areas around the wet areas of Australia in the southwest of Western Australia, and from AdelaideAdelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
in South Australia to Cooktown, on Cape York Peninsula
Cape York Peninsula
Cape York Peninsula is a large remote peninsula located in Far North Queensland at the tip of the state of Queensland, Australia, the largest unspoilt wilderness in northern Australia and one of the last remaining wilderness areas on Earth...
, as well as in Darwin, Northern Territory
Darwin, Northern Territory
Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...
.
External links
- Calvatia cyathiformis at Mushroomobserver.org.
- http://australianfungi.blogspot.com/2007/05/13-calvatia-cyathiformis.html Australian Fungi - A Blog: Fungus observations around Australia, particularly in the Hunter Valley north of Sydney. Accessed 12 Feb. 2011.
- http://www.mushroomexpert.com/calvatia_cyathiformis.html Accessed at MushroomExpert.Com on 12 Feb. 2011.