Clitocybe fragrans
Description
Clitocybe fragrans is a white mushroom with an odor of aniseed. It is pale yellowish-brown when wet, whitish-cream when dry with a darker center. The margin is finely striate. The stem is concolorous with a cap. Grows solitary to scattered to gregarious, most common in redwood duff, also other mixed conifer forests. Fall through early spring. Widely distributed in North America and Europe.
While edible, it should be avoided as it can be confused with deadly poisonous species and has low culinary value.
Common names: Fragrant Funnel, Slim Anise Mushroom, Slanke Anijstrechterzwam (Dutch), Clitocybe Parfumé (French), Dufttrichterling (German), Slanke Anijstrechterzwam (Netherlands), Lejkówka Dusząca (Polish).
Mushroom Identification
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Cap
1.5-5 cm, flattened convex sometimes slightly depressed, with an inrolled margin becoming somewhat wavy in age; hygrophanous, pale yellowish brown when wet, whitish cream when dry, with a darker center; smooth, finely radially lined at the margin.
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Flesh
Thin, soft, pliant; whitish to buff.
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Gills
Adnate to slightly decurrent, close, narrow to moderately broad; whitish buff; up to 0.6 cm broad.
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Stem
3-6 cm x 0.3-0.6 cm, stuffed then hollow, often curved and slightly enlarged toward the base; whitish to pale buff; silky with fine hairs on the stem, felty with a few thin rhizoids at the base.
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Odor and Taste
Anise.
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Spores
Spores 6.5-8 x 3.5-4 microns, elliptic, smooth, inamyloid; basidia 4-spored, 23-35 x 5-8 microns; clamp connections present.
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Spore Print
White.
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Habitat
Fruiting solitary or in smaller groups on wet and mossy spots on the soil, often close to hardwoods. In open woodlands, parklands, cemeteries, large gardens etc. Sometimes can be found almost all year long (except in the hot summer period), but mostly from Summer to early Winter.
Look-Alikes
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Typically larger and has a pinkish buff to the ochre cap.
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Has a strong aniseed smell, but it is usually larger than C. fragrans and when young and fresh it has a blue cap.
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Clitocybe metachroa
Very similar. Differs in the cap pattern when mature.
Medicinal Properties
Anti-tumor effects. Polysaccharides extracted from the mycelial culture of C. fragrans and administered intraperitoneally into white mice at a dosage of 300 mg/kg inhibited the growth of Sarcoma 180 and Ehrlich solid cancers by 80% (Ohtsuka et al., 1973).
History
In 1792 English botanist William Wittering described this species and named it Agaricus fragrans. In 1871 German mycologist Paul Kummer transferred this mushroom to the genus Clitocybe with the currently accepted scientific name Clitocybe fragrans.
The generic name Clitocybe means "sloping head". The Latin epithet "fragrans" means "fragrant" which leads us to the aniseed-like odor of this fungi.
Synonyms and Varieties
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Agaricus fragrans With. 1792
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Agaricus obsoletus Batsch
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Clitocybe acicola Singer, 1990
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Clitocybe deceptiva H.E. Bigelow 1982
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Clitocybe depauperata (J.E.Lange) P.D.Orton 1960
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Clitocybe fragrans (Fr.) Quel.
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Clitocybe fragrans var. depauperata J.E. Lange 1930
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Clitocybe obsoleta auct.
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Clitocybe suaveolens (Schumach.) P. Kumm., 1871
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Lepista fragrans (With.) Harmaja, 1976
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Omphalia fragrans (With.) Gray, 1821
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Omphalia luffii Massee, 1898
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Pseudolyophyllum fragrans (With.) Raithelh., 1978
Video
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