A small, scaly, amatoxin-containing Lepiota of lawns, parks, gardens and mulched beds. It has caused fatal poisonings in Spain, Tunisia and elsewhere after being mistaken for edible grassland mushrooms such as the grey knight (Tricholoma terreum) and the fairy ring champignon (Marasmius oreades); in one Turkish case it was picked together with Agaricus bisporus.
Deadly. Contains alpha-amanitin; cooking does not destroy it, and 3-4 mushrooms can cause liver damage. Symptoms start 6-12 hours (up to 36 hours) after eating with pain, vomiting and watery diarrhoea, ease after about a day, then return around 72 hours with signs of liver failure; death can follow 7-10 days after the first symptoms. Dogs are also at risk.
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Habitat
In grass and disturbed ground: lawns, fields, parks, gardens, mulched garden beds and roadsides.
Distribution
Europe, mainly the warmer south but also Britain and Germany; western Asia (Turkey, Israel, Iran, Pakistan) and eastern China. Introduced in New Zealand and South Australia.
Characteristics
Cap: 2.5-5 cm (up to 7 cm); hemispherical, flattening with age; red-brown to pinkish-purple or greyish brown when young, fading to pale pinkish brown, with darker brown scales on a white background and usually an unbroken central disc. Gills: white, free, thick, not crowded. Stem: 2-6 cm x 0.4-1.4 cm; hollow and fragile; upper part pinkish tan, lower part with dark brown scales below a dark brown ring-like zone. Flesh: reddens when bruised or cut; faint fruity smell. Spore print: white. Spores: oval, 6-7.5 x 3.5-5 um, dextrinoid.
