The North American species of Psathyrella.

1972]

PSATHYRELLA

91

Distribution. Generally throughout the hardwood forest area of the United
States and Canada.
Observations. This is our most common and variable species in North America.
The type form should lack outer-veil remnants on the pileus and the latter should
be spadiceous (date brown?) when young. This variant is rare with us. I have
seen specimens from Mt. Rainier, however, showing the above mentioned features.
Our most common variant is pale honey brown and at first has a few superficial
fibrils from an almost rudimentary outer veil. In another variant a fairly welldeveloped outer veil is present. As for P. incerta, we find collections of this species
in which some of the basidiocarps are annulate. In all, however, the gill trama
is pallid as revived in KOH or if pale tan at first soon fades. For Agaricus
spintriger (Drosophila in Kiihner and Romagnesi, 1953), they and Singer (1963)
both emphasize the pigmented gill trama. Aside from this feature A. spintriger
would seem to fit in with the North American variants as an annulate variant with
possibly the pigmentation of the type variant. I have not recognized A. spintriger
in North America. The constellation of variants around P. candolleana and
P. hymenocephala needs a critical study based on cultures correlated with the
details of the naturally occurring basidiocarps. P. leucotephra (B. & Br.) Orton
is close to our annulate variant of P. candolleana.
Material examined. UNITED STATES. Alabama: Burke 715. Arizona:
Whiting 814/2602, 814/2608. California: Morse 7-20-43, 7-20-44; Smith 8366,
9401; White 39, 47, 193. Colorado: Smith 51576, 51649, 51650, 51970. Idaho:
Cooke 21372A; Gruber 8; Smith 58467, 68520; Trueblood 2858. Kansas: Bartholomew, Fungi Columbiani 4731; Brooks 1592; Ellis and Everhart, Fungi
Columbiani 1303; Kapp 258, 283a. Maryland: Kelly 931. Massachusetts: Kelly
385. Michigan: Ammirati 1586, 1646, 2252; Brooks 1006; Charlton G168; Homola
829, 1290; Hoseney 81, 99, 365, 374, 405, 1246; Kanouse 6-19-29, 7-1-45, 7-9-58;
Kauffman 7-1875, 7-22-05, 7-20-12; Lange 1428; Mazzer 4067, 4242; Oches
7-?-22; Oches and Kauffman 8-13-22; Potter 3132, 3348, 3419, 3582, 3643, 4752,
4955, 5216, 5565, 6162, 6253, 6498, 7390, 7402, 7674, 7922, 9864; Smith 33-117,
33-955, 10, 25, 1366, 1398, 1433, 1472, 6294, 6394, 6556, 9519, 11023, 15106, 21681,
23473, 25436, 25790, 32022, 32046, 32281, 32392, 32459, 32568, 36836, 39225, 50665,
57125, 62097, 62431, 62596, 66493, 66985, 71692, 72994, 75389, 5-25-34, 8-15-37;
Thiers 3080; Zehner 10. Minnesota: Weaver 6-5-62-Y3. Montana: Cotner
570035. New Mexico: Barrows 633. New York: Kauffman 1902; Lowe 9-14-34;
Shaffer 136, 275. North Carolina: Smith 10832. Ohio: Cooke 31829; Walters 124.
Oregon: Gruber 6; Sipe 598; Smith 9295, 19236, 19437, 19438, 19598, 27338.
Pennsylvania: Sumstine 4, 10-13-39, 6-24-40, 7-8-40, 7-10-40, 8-1-40, 6-12-41.
Tennessee: Hesler 14177, 16762, 17971, 18613; Smith 9842; Underwood 7787.
Texas: Thiers 1443. Utah: McKnight F31. Vermont: Shaffer 3564. Washington: Cooke 19678; Flett 9-25-40, 6-20-41; Grant, 1923; Imshaug 802, 1129, 1281;
Quinby 20, 94, 97, 106; Smith 13177, 13238, 13244, 13457, 13571, 13598, 13608,
13645, 13698, 13743, 13927, 14012, 14135, 14169, 14266, 14600,14707, 16431, 16553,
29364, 29413, 29414, 29517, 29518, 29520, 29555, 29584, 30009, 31460; Stuntz F-597.
CANADA. Ontario: Bartholomew, Fungi Columbiani 4123; DAOM 24162;
Groves F-7414.
51a. Psathyrella candolleana var. solitaria A. H. Smith, var. nov.
Pileus 2-4 cm latus, convexus demum planus, glaber, ad marginem appendiculatus, hygrophanus, luteolus demum albidus; lamellae confertae, angustae, demum
cacaocolor; stipe 4-5 cm longus, 3-4.5 mm crassus albidus; sporae 7-9(12) X