How to identify Pine Cone Lepidella

To correctly identify Pine Cone Lepidella (Amanita strobiliformis), check each of these features in order. Misidentification is the most common cause of mushroom poisoning, so cross-reference multiple sources.

Step-by-step identification

1. 1

   Cap

   Shape, color, surface texture, and diameter.

   5-20 cm in diameter, white to off-white, covered with large, prominent, pyramidal, often brownish or grayish warts that are remnants of the universal veil. The margin is often appendiculate with veil remnants.

2. 2

   Gills

   Attachment to stem, color, and spacing.

   Free or narrowly attached, crowded, white to cream, sometimes with a slightly serrated edge.

3. 3

   Stem

   Length, shape, surface, and any ring.

   8-20 cm long, 1.5-4 cm thick, white, solid, tapering slightly upwards from a bulbous base. The stem is often shaggy or scaly below the ring. It has a large, pendulous, membranous, white ring that is often striate on the upper surface. The volva is typically a series of concentric rings or a collar-like structure at the base, often breaking up and becoming less distinct with age.

4. 4

   Flesh

   Color, texture, and bruising reaction.

   Thick, white, firm, and does not change color when cut or bruised.

5. 5

   Fruiting body

   Overall growth pattern.

   Large and robust, initially egg-shaped, expanding to convex and then flat.

6. 6

   Habitat

   Where it grows and on what substrate.

   Solitary or scattered in deciduous and mixed woodlands, particularly under oak, beech, and hornbeam trees. It is a mycorrhizal species.

Key Facts

Cap surfaces

Dry, covered with large, pyramidal, often brownish or grayish warts.

Growth Form

Solitary or scattered.

Spore Print

White.

Body color

White to off-white.

Odor

Mild, sometimes radish-like.

Flesh bruises

No color change.

Height

8-20 cm

Cap Diameter

5-20 cm

Fruit body characteristics

• Gill attachment: Free to narrowly attached.
• Stem shape: Cylindrical, tapering slightly upwards from a bulbous base.
• Stem surface: White, often shaggy or scaly below the ring.
• Ring: Large, pendulous, membranous, white, often striate on the upper surface.
• Stem cross-section: Solid.

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