Marasmius oreades

Marasmius oreades, also known as t he fairy ring mushroom or fairy ring champignon, is a
mushroom nat ive t o Nort h America and Europe. It s common names can cause some
confusion, as many ot her mushrooms grow in fairy rings, such as t he edible Agaricus
campestris and t he poisonous Chlorophyllum molybdites.
 Marasmius oreades

Scientific classification

Kingdom: Fungi

Division: Basidiomycot a

Class: Agaricomycet es

Order: Agaricales

Family: Marasmiaceae

Genus: Marasmius

Species: M. oreades

Binomial name

Marasmius oreades

(Bolton) Fr (1836)
 Marasmius oreades
Mycological charact erist ics

gills on hymenium

cap is convex
or umbonate

hymenium is adnate

stipe is bare

spore print is white

ecology is saprotrophic

edibility: choice

Distribution and habitat

Marasmius oreades grows ext ensively t hroughout Nort h America, especially t he east where
t hey are also more diverse,[1] and Europe in t he summer and aut umn (fall) (June–November in
t he UK), or year-round in warmer climat es. It appears in grassy areas such as lawns,[1]
meadows, and even dunes in coast al areas.

Description

Marasmius oreades grows gregariously in t roops, arcs, or rings (t ype II, which causes t he grass
t o grow and become greener). The cap is 1–5 cent imet res (1⁄2–2 inches) across; bell-shaped
wit h a somewhat inrolled margin at first , becoming broadly convex wit h an even or uplift ed
margin, but usually ret aining a slight cent ral bump- an "umbo"; dry; smoot h; pale t an or buff,
occasionally whit e, or reddish t an; usually changing color markedly as it dries out ; t he margin
somet imes faint ly lined.[2]

The bare, pallid, and t ough st em[1] grows up t o about 2–6 cm (1–21⁄2 in) t all and 2–6 mm
(1⁄16–1⁄4 in) in diamet er.[3]

The gills are at t ached t o t he st em or free from it ,[2] fairly t hick and spaced apart , and whit e or
pale t an, wit h a cyanide-like odor[1] and dropping a whit e spore print . The spores measure 7–
10 μm × 4–6 μm; t hey are smoot h, ellipt ical, and inamyloid. Cyst idia absent . Pileipellis wit hout
broom cells.[2]
Edibility

A dried string of 50 fairy ring caps.

Marasmius oreades is a choice edible mushroom.[4] It s sweet t ast e lends it t o baked goods
such as cookies. It is also used in foods such as soups, st ews, et c. Tradit ionally, t he st ems
(which t end t o be fibrous and unappet izing) are cut off and t he caps are t hreaded and dried in
st rings. A possible reason why t his mushroom is so sweet -t ast ing is due t o t he presence of
t rehalose, a t ype of sugar t hat allows M. oreades t o resist deat h by desiccat ion.[5] When
exposed t o wat er aft er being complet ely dried out , t he t rehalose is digest ed as t he cells
complet ely revive, causing cellular processes, including t he creat ion of new spores, t o begin
again.

Ecological uses

Marasmius oreades can be used for t he biological remediat ion of bismut h in pollut ed soils.[6]

Similar species

This mushroom can be mist aken for t he t oxic Clitocybe dealbata or C. rivulosa, which have
closely spaced decurrent gills.[3] The lat t er lacks an umbo, and is whit e t o grey in color.

Some species of t he Collybia, Marasmiellus, Micromphale, and Strobilurus genera are also
similar, somet imes requiring microscopic analysis t o different iat e.[1]

References
 1. Trudell, Steve; Ammirati, Joe (2009). Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest (https://books.google.co
m/books?id=WevHvt6Tr8kC) . Timber Press Field Guides. Portland, OR: Timber Press. pp. 113–
114. ISBN 978-0-88192-935-5.

2. Marasmius oreades (http://www.mushroomexpert.com/marasmius_oreades.html)

(MushroomExpert.com)

3. Davis, R. Michael; Sommer, Robert; Menge, John A. (2012). Field Guide to Mushrooms of Western
North America (https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/797915861) . Berkeley: University of California
Press. pp. 27, 188–189. ISBN 978-0-520-95360-4. OCLC 797915861 (https://www.worldcat.org/ocl
c/797915861) .

4. Miller Jr., Orson K.; Miller, Hope H. (2006). North American Mushrooms: A Field Guide to Edible and
Inedible Fungi. Guilford, CN: FalconGuide. p. 196. ISBN 978-0-7627-3109-1.

5. Marasmius oreades, the fairy ring mushroom, leprechaun. (http://botit.botany.wisc.edu/toms_fungi/

mar2003.html) Tom Volk's Fungus of the Month for March 2003

6. Elekes, Carmen Cristina; Busuioc, Gabriela. "The Mycoremediation of Metals Polluted Soils Using
Wild Growing Species of Mushrooms (http://www.wseas.us/e-library/conferences/2010/Corfu/EDUC
ATION/EDUCATION-04.pdf) ". Engineering Education.

External links

Media relat ed t o Marasmius oreades at Wikimedia Commons

Retrieved from
"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?
title=Marasmius_oreades&oldid=1080103272"

Last edited 2 months ago by Rodw