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Species Information
Summary: Features include 1) a small, white, spherical or nearly spherical fruitbody, 2) white crowded spines joined at their tips into star-shaped groups, with fine granular material between spines, 3) an inner layer which when exposed is pale brown and smooth, 4) opening by a single pore that may enlarge to a mouth or elongated slit, 5) a spore mass that is white becoming powdery and olivaceous, 6) a sterile base that is poorly developed to scant, 7) the attachment of the fruitbody to the substrate by a pad of dirt and mycelium but without conspicuous rhizomorphs, 8) growth in grass in late summer and fall, 9) round spores with small spines, and 10) the microscopic details of the capillitium.
Lycoperdon curtisii is found at least in BC (in Redhead), WA (Ramsey), AB (Schalkwijk-Barendsen), and ON and PQ, (Bowerman). It widely distributed in North America (Smith(4)).
Outer Surface: 0.5-2cm across, spherical to nearly spherical when young "but often angular from mutual pressure", outer layer with crowded spines joined at their tips into stellate [star-shaped] groups, "fine granular material present between the spines, spines and scurf falling away" when mature over small areas around the top at first but finally from all exposed surfaces, "the granular material remaining longest as a powdery coating", (Smith(39)), 1-2cm broad, less high; depressed-spherical to pulvinate [cushion-shaped], pleated in lower part; outer layer white, closely covered with white spines, appearing furry, later cracking and peeling away from inner layer in chunks, (Ramsey)
Inner layer: when exposed pale brown, smooth, "dehiscing by a simple pore which may enlarge" to a mouth 0.2-0.4cm wide or an elongated slit, (Smith(39)), smooth, ultimately medium brown and opens by a small pore, (Ramsey)
Spore Mass: white at first; powdery and olivaceous when mature; pseudocolumella weakly developed, (Smith(39))
Stem: attached by a pad of dirt and mycelium; sterile base in section "poorly developed to scant", of small chambers at the base of the spore mass adjacent to point of attachment to substrate, "whitish when young to brownish purple by maturity", "diaphragm lacking or very inconspicuous", (Smith(39)), sterile base absent; without conspicuous rhizomorphs, (Ramsey)
Odor: mild (Miller)
Taste: mild (Miller)
Microscopic: spores 3-3.5 x 3-3.5 microns, round, "ornamented with small spines, ochraceous to light yellow-brown in KOH", "pedicel absent to inconspicuous"; paracapillitium "abundant, threads 3-7 microns wide", incrusted with colorless debris, "frequently septate, sparingly branched, the extremities rounded", walls parallel, colorless, thin, unpitted, eucapillitium scant, of threads up to 4.5 microns wide, "with thickened, brownish, unpitted walls, unbranched, more numerous near the endoperidium", (Smith(39))
Habitat / Range
gregarious to cespitose in pastures and open areas, fall, (Smith(39)), gregarious in grass, late summer and fall, (Ramsey)
Similar Species
Lycoperdon marginatum is similar when immature, but L. marginatum 1) is usually larger, 2) has a cortex that is less persistent and flakes off in large patches, 3) has a darker inner peridium, 4) has larger spores, and 5) has darker capillitium, (Bowerman). Lycoperdon subincarnatum also has colorless capillitium but has a pinkish brown cortex and pitted inner peridium, (Bowerman). See also SIMILAR section of Lycoperdon nettyanum.
