Panaeolus cinctulus
Description
Panaeolus cinctulus is a very common, widely distributed psilocybin mushroom. According to American naturalist and mycologist David Arora, Panaeolus cinctulus is the most common psilocybin mushroom in California.
The psilocybin potency ranges from weak to moderate but might be the only active mushroom you will ever be able to find.
During the early 1900s, these species were referred to as the "weed Panaeolus" because they were commonly found in beds of the commercially grown, grocery-store mushroom Agaricus bisporus. Mushroom farmers had to weed it out from the edible mushrooms because of its hallucinogenic properties.
Common names: Banded Mottlegill, Weed Panaeolus, Subbs.
Mushroom Identification
Cap
1.5–5.5 cm (5⁄8–2+1⁄8 in), hemispherical to convex when young to broadly umbonate or plane in age, smooth, hygrophanous, striking cinnamon-brown when moist, soot-black when wet which disappears as the mushroom completely dries out. The outer band is usually darker. The flesh is cinnamon-brown to cream-colored and thin.
Gills
Close, adnate to adnexed, cream-colored when young, later mottled dingy brown then to soot-black. Gill edges are white and slightly fringed, but turn blackish when fully mature.
Stem
2–10 cm long, 2–9 mm thick, equal or tapered at the ends, reddish-brown to whitish, pruinose, hollow, no veil remnants, longitudinally white-fibrillose and white-powdered, striate at the apex or twisting vertically down the entire length of the stipe, Stem base and mycelium occasionally staining blue.
Spores
12 x 8 µm, smooth, ellipitic-citriform, thick-walled.
Spore Print
Black
Taste
Farinaceous (like flour) when fresh, saliferous (salty) when dried.
Odor
Slightly farinaceous.
Microscopic Features
Spores 11–16 x 7.5–10 x 6–9 µm, smooth, elliptical to rhomboid in face view, elliptical in side view.
Season
Spring, summer, and fall.
Panaeolus cinctulus Habitat
Panaeolus cinctulus is a cosmopolitan species that grows solitary to gregarious to cespitose (densely clumped) on compost piles, well-fertilized lawns and gardens, and, rarely, directly on horse dung. It grows from Spring to Fall seasons. It grows abundantly after rain. It can be found in many regions, including Africa (South Africa), Austria, Canada (Alberta, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Ontario, Quebec), Nova Scotia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Guadeloupe, Estonia, Iceland, India, Ireland, Italy, South Korea, Japan, Mexico, New Guinea, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Russia, Slovenia, South America (Argentina, Chile, Brazil) and the United States (it is common in Oregon, Alaska, Washington, and both Northern and Southern California, but is also known to occur in all 50 states).
It has also been sighted in Melbourne, Australia, Belgium, and The Czech Republic.
Panaeolus cinctulus Effects
Despite its alarming history and association with so-called “poisonings” no human deaths have ever been recorded from this mushroom. The few descriptions of accidental P. cinctulus ingestion result in symptoms that on the surface appear to be consistent with a magic mushroom experience. One record of such an event involved a hospital admission of a Scottish man and woman who reported nausea, difficulty carrying out work, as well as a “sharpening of the senses.”
Like other psychedelic mushrooms, P. cinctulus have been found to contain psilocybin, psilocin, and baeocystin. Though the subjective effects of magic mushrooms may be shaped by the relative concentrations of different alkaloids, you can expect that a trip on P. cinctulus will share many of the similar features, like those felt from a more commonly available species like Psilocybe cubensis. While some online trip reports might make claims of different subjective effects, given the powerful impact of set and setting in any psychedelic experience, it’s hard to separate the effects of different species, especially considering that no two mushroom trips are ever the same.
Panaeolus cinctulus Dose
The maximum known potency of P. cinctulus puts them at about half as strong as your average P. cubensis variety. However, like other psilocybin-containing mushroom species, the alkaloid content of P. cinctulus may vary between both young and old mushrooms, as well as between mushrooms picked in different regions. Given this variation in potency, some have found that a psychedelic experience brought on by a particularly strong batch of P. cinctulus might be more comparable to trip on a weaker variety of P. cubensis.
This means that if you’re used to dosing with P. cubensis, a good starting point for consuming P. cinctulus would be at least the same amount as your preferred P. cubensis dose. If after an hour or so you’re not feeling the familiar effects, then you can always take a little more and see how you go from there. It’s best to proceed with caution when trying out any new species of psychedelic mushroom for the first time, and understand that when it comes to finding a comfortable dosage, a few weaker dose-finding trips might be preferable to one that’s far too intense.
Synonyms
Agaricus cinctulus Bolton (1791)
Coprinus cinctulus (Bolton) Gray (1821)
Agaricus fimicola var. cinctulus (Bolton) Cooke (1883)
Panaeolus fimicola var. cinctulus (Bolton) Rea (1922)
Agaricus subbalteatus Berk. & Broome (1861)
Panaeolus subbalteatus (Berk. & Broome) Sacc. (1887)
Panaeolus alveolatus Peck (1902)
Panaeolus acidus Sumstine (1905)
Campanularius semiglobatus Murrill (1911)
Panaeolus semiglobatus (Murrill) Sacc. & Trottcr (1925)
Panaeolus rufus Overh. (1916)
Panaeolus variabilis Overh. (1916)
Panaeolus venenosus Murrill (1916)
Psilocybe vernalis Velen. (1921)
Campanularius pumilus Murrill (1942)
Panaeolus pumilus (Murrill) Murrill (1942)
Panaeolus dunensis Bon & Courtec (1983)
Photo sources:
Photo 1 - Author: T.Kewin (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Photo 2 - Author: Peter de Lange (Public Domain)
Photo 3 - Author: Peter de Lange (Public Domain)
Photo 4 - Author: Juan Carlos Pérez Magaña (CC BY-SA 4.0)