Verrucosporaceae ('Lepiotaceae')

Introduction

Lepiota and allies are known for free gills, white spores and often scales on the cap that can't be removed (unlike the similarly defined Amanitaceae that have a universal veil that may leave warts, which unlike scales, are removable). Rarely, one may have a coloured spore print or be scale-less, but for the families covered on this page, they will all have free gills. All species seem to have some sort of obvious partial veil. Species in this family often have a coloured "eye" in the cap disc where the scales are especially dense. Like Amanita, some of them have evolved to produce the deadly Amatoxin and can kill you if you eat them (but not nearly as many species as we once thought). Others are eaten regularly, especially some Shaggy Parasols (Chlorophyllum) although one species of that can be dangerously poisonous as well. While most Amanita are mycorrhizal, most 'Lepiotaceae' are saprophytic.

The 'Lepiotaceae' have been thought to be a kind of sub-family of the Agaricaceae, not considered a family in their own right because they would be paraphyletic ("inside" Agaricaceae, not "beside" or sister to it). That family is known for dark chocolate spores and free gills. However, the 'Lepiotaceae' mushrooms lost their spore colour and mostly have white spores, something that also happened to Laccaria (that too is in the dark spored clade of agarics).

We now know the picture is not as simple as there being one group of 'Lepiotas' that evolved inside the Agaricaceae. The free gilled genera are in two groups of the Agaricaceae s.l., meaning that spore pigment may have gone away in several separate evolutionary events.

Free gills - some genera are very closely related to Agaricus (Chlorophyllum, Macrolepiota, and Leucocoprinus s.l. (Leucoagaricus, Leucocoprinus, and Macropsalliota)) and are considered inside the Agaricaceae s.s. In fact, the Agaricaceae s.s.'s ancestral trait may be white spores, with Agaricus and sister genera re-acquiring spore pigment.
Free gills - Some genera are a little more distant, and considered a sister family of their own, the Verrucosporaceae (or 'Lepiotaceae') (Lepiota, Cystolepiota (Melanophyllum), Pulverolepiota, and Echinoderma). While it's tempting to call them the Lepiotaceae, that family was not legally described, and for now the proper family name is the Verrucosporaceae. This page covers these genera.

There are also two similar looking groups with attached gills (think Cystoderma), once thought to be closely related to the free gilled genera but now appearing to be further away, meaning there may have been one or two additional events where spore pigment was lost. They probably did not evolve near Agaricus closely enough to have had an ancestor with free gills, so that explains the attached gilled 'Lepiotaceae' like Cystoderma.

To complicate things further, two genera re-evolved coloured spores (or never completely lost all their pigments), one in each clade - Chlorophyllum (one species has green spores) and Melanophyllum (green or red spores!). The attached gilled group also has one genus that did not completely lose its spore pigment, Phaeolepiota.

This family evolved one trufflized gastroid mushroom, Chlorophyllum (Endoptychum) agaricoides, that will not be recognizable to family. Another species, Endoptychum depressum, is actually an Agaricus and covered there as Agaricus inapertus.

If there are no scales and no warts, you'll have to decide between one of the Lepiota-like genera and Amanitaceae. Leucoagaricus leucothites vs. Amanita smithiana/silvicola is an example. The two families have a slightly different look to their "free gills", a slightly different general stature (stocky vs stately), and the presence of a universal veil should be detectable in young Amanitas at least as a slight general shagginess.

abundant common uncommon rare - colour codes match my Pictorial Key and are my opinions and probably reflect my bias of living in W WA. Rare species may be locally common in certain places at certain times.

Summary of Interesting Results

Here are some of the newest, most interesting results of the study:

We have at least 4 species of Echinoderma, all probably undescribed. We do not have E. asperum.
I've made an attempt to characterize macroscopically Lepiota vs Leucoacoprinus s.l., which are easily confused without a microscope.
Some species are actually species groups and some are sister species to their European counterparts that may need new names.

Echinoderma - click to expand

medium to large species with erect scales on the cap and staining colours, uncommon to rare. Similar species with smaller spores that also have erect scales but flesh that does not stain are covered under Lepiota.

Species mentioned: Echinoderma asperum, eriophorum, perplexum, flavidoasperum. Lepiota acutesquamosa, aspera.

Echinoderma asperum (Lepiota aspera/Lepiota acutesquamosa) is a European species reported from the PNW, but that is not the species we have. Neither does it appear that our species is the same as the east coast Echinoderma eriophorum. We have at least 5 undescribed species in need of names.

True Echinoderma species have spores perhaps 6.5-9x3u and caps > 2.5cm across. There are similar species with erect cap scales and scaly stems (but they do not stain colour), with spores perhaps 5x3u, and although my ITS only trees sometimes show them near Echinoderma with weak support, a 4-gene study has shown that they belong in Lepiota. Some of those Lepiota are small, delicate mushrooms (easily distinguished from Echinoderma) but some are large and stocky, so you'll have to study the photos and look at the spores to tell them from Echinoderma.

Echinoderma PNW01 - This species, the first 2 times it was photographed, had a uniformly warm brown coloured cap, not showing any concentric rings of white between the scales. The third collection was mostly white with a few brown scales. I think a decade-old collection that was almost pure white may have been the same thing. In all cases, there were loose chunks of spines on the stem, especially near the bottom. It is uncommon, having been found twice in WA, once in Victoria, once on Texada Island (north of Nanaimo BC) and once in boreal BC. In one BC collection, it was with conifers. The white collection was in red cedar debris and had an unpleasant rubbery odor.

Uniformly brown Echinoderma PNW01 © Danny Miller & Marty Kranabetter. Mostly white PNW01 © Sharon Squazzo. Mostly white possible PNW01 © Danny Miller

Echinoderma PNW03 - This very similar species has a possibly colder brown cap than PNW01 and seems to show some white between the cap scales as it expands. It's unclear if the stem scales are more appressed than in PNW01 and fall off less easily. It is uncommon, having been sequenced more than a half dozen times in Vancouver BC, at least once in WA and also in Quebec and Arizona.

Echinoderma PNW03 © Danny Miller and Matthew Koons

Echinoderma 'favidoasperum PNW02' - This species has a warm yellow brown cap and a mostly smooth stem. E. flavidoasperum, from China, from which it differs by 6-7bp and 1-2 indels has a slightly reddening stem when handled. This rare sister species was found in the Cascade mountains in Manning Park BC and near Stampede Pass, WA.

Echinoderma PNW04 - Species PNW04 seems to be much like species PNW01 and PNW03, but with a rich milk chocolate coloured cap, and it appears to only have erect scales on the disc, with flattened scales everywhere else. It appears to have a fibrillose stem (not a scaly stem) and little white areas are showing between the brown scales. Also rare, it was found once SE of Salem, OR. It may be somewhat of a sister species of Echinoderma perplexum (differs by about 10%).

Echinoderma 'flavidoasperum PNW02' © Danny Miller (2 images), Echinoderma PNW04 © NAMA and the Field Museum of Natural History

Echinoderma PNW05 - this species has spores almost as small as the Lepiota lookalikes (5-5.7 x 2.7-3.5 µm), but it does seem to stain brown indicating Echinoderma. It was found and sequenced twice in the same week in summer in WA.

Echinoderma PNW05 © Yi-Min Wang (3 images)

Cystolepiota and Pulverolepiota - click to expand

small, delicate fruitbodies
a shaggy appearance overall from a cottony universal veil material, no ring on the stem. Uncommon to rare.
Melanophyllum evolved from within Cystolepiota (it is paraphyletic inside Cystolepiota), so perhaps both genera should have the same name, in which case Melanophyllum is the oldest name.

Species mentioned: Cystolepiota seminuda, bucknallii, moelleri, oregonensis, hetieri, fumosifolia, cystidiosa, petasiformis, pulverulenta

Cystolepiota 'seminuda PNW01'/'seminuda PNW02'/'seminuda PNW04' - Our least rare species in this genus are probably the most slender ones. They have a white cap with pinkish stem (the pink may intensify) and lots of shaggy material that disappears in age to become "half nude". There is a group of species matching this description all over the world; we have some east coast names but no west coast names that I know of for potential species, so we will probably need new names for ours. I have found 3 genetic species in the PNW, none likely the real thing from Europe. PNW04 had a bit of pigment on the cap disc.

Cystolepiota 'seminuda PNW01' © NAMA and the Field Museum of Natural History and Yi-Min Wang, C. 'seminuda PNW02' © iNaturalist user haunma and Matthew Koons

Cystolepiota 'seminuda PNW04' © Matthew Koons

Cystolepiota 'bucknallii PNW03' - This beautiful, purple, cottony mushroom smells strongly and disagreeably like coal tar. This is a group of species in Europe and we have something distinct from all of them that likely needs a new name. These species clade far away from any other species and probably belong in their own section. A multi-gene study will have to confirm that they don't deserve their own genus.

Cystolepiota cf moelleri EU - This very rare mushroom has pink velar material on the cap. We have potential European DNA but need local DNA to confirm if we have this species, or what the two BC and WA collections that resembled that species really are.

Cystolepiota 'bucknallii PNW03' © Lauren Ré, unsequenced Cystolepiota cf moelleri © A and O Ceska (2 images)

Cystolepiota oregonensis PNW06 - staining rusty brown in age and where handled, with copious veil material, but not nearly as much fluff as the similar Pulverolepiota CA03 below. C. oregonensis is described from Oregon and I'm not sure if it's this species, or P. CA03, so both have code names for now. We have one sequence that may be this, closely related to the European Cystolepiota hetieri, which it resembles, and which may be a group of species in the EU.

Cystolepiota fumosifolia WA (=Cystolepiota cystidiosa MI?) - Not petite (~3cm) white, cottony mushroom turning smoky coloured in cap and gills in age. Described from WA, and we have California DNA but and also 100% matching ITS from an old WA Smith collection that he called C. cystidiosa, supporting the theory that that is a newer synonym.

Cystolepiota 'oregonensis PNW06' © Yi-Min Wang

Cystolepiota PNW08 -a small, white, fluffy mushroom. It is distant enough from other species that I would like to see other genes confirm that it doesn't need its own genus. Sequenced from WA and HI.

Pulverolepiota - these species are especially shaggy with veil material when young, like Pulverolepiota pulverulenta EU. My one gene ITS trees were hinting that all of Cystolepiota might not belong together. A 2-gene study implied that it actually might, but now a 5-gene study has shown that these species very likely deserve their own genus, and they resurrected Pulverolepiota for it.

Pulverolepiota 'petasiformis PNW07' - Copious cottony veil material, often forming a false conehead. Smells farinaceous. Described from Washington, we have California DNA and BC DNA (3 bp from each other in ITS2 only) but no Washington DNA yet. This species was studied with the type and seemed to match it, but keep reading.

Pulverolepiota 'petasiformis PNW05' - one WA sequence is different. I don't know for sure which of these two species is the real one, but one of them probably doesn't need a provisional code name.

Pulverolepiota CA03 - found in CA and OR, this appears to stain orange, but it is believed to be much shaggier than Cystolepiota 'oregonensis PNW06', above. Since it's possible that P. CA03 is Cystolepiota oregonensis, I have given the other species a code name, just in case.

Melanophyllum - click to expand

this genus evolved from within Cystolepiota (it is paraphyletic inside Cystolepiota), so perhaps both genera should have the same name, in which case Melanophyllum is the oldest name.
small (<5cm) amazing mushrooms that evolved coloured red and/or green spores
greyish-brown cap, bright red free gills and scales all over the cap and stem.
membranous veil material seems to often be left on the cap margin as well as on the stem in a ring zone. This is very much unlike the cottony universal veil material of Cystolepiota.

Species mentioned: Melanophyllum haematospermum

Lepiota - click to expand

small to medium mushrooms (cap <10cm, stem <1cm thick)
stems may be smooth, scaly or shaggy
caps smooth or scaly, but not shaggy, granular or striate, fruitbodies not staining red
smooth stemmed species will usually have a brownish "eye" of scales on the disc that break up concentrically and not stain appreciably red (although rarely such a mushroom will be a Leucoagaricus).
(see Leucoagaricus for small mushrooms that stain red, have pink, black or pure white scales or have reddish radiating fibrils instead of scales that break up individually or concentrically)

Species mentioned: Lepiota megnispora, ventriosospora, clypeolaria, spheniscispora, erminea, alba, subincarnata, josserandii, helveola, carinii, castanea, pilodes, fuscosquamea, clypeolarioides, cortinarius, felina, fuscovinacea, cristata, kauffmanii, castaneidisca, subnivosa, subfelina, concentrica, amplifolia, thiersii

Shaggy stems - click to expand
Shaggy stems, with some cottony material on the stem (often reported as deadly poisonous and at least one actually is)
Species mentioned: Lepiota magnispora, ventriosospora, clypeolaria, erminea, alba, subincarnata, josserandii, helveola.

Lepiota magnispora WA - This medium sized PNW mushroom, described from WA, is a little larger than most. It usually has quite a dark, coloured "eye" on the disc (although twice it has been found with a subtler eye like L. clypeolaria). The stem is shaggy, unlike most other similar species. The group of shaggy stemmed Lepiotas have much larger spores than most others.

Lepiota ventriosospora UK - Not a synonym, although some have declared it is, it appears to have distinct DNA very close to L. magnispora. The type is from the UK, and it is found in AZ and ID (inland desert areas, I suspect). The scales on the rest of the cap may be a bit paler then the cap eye, and there may be yellow on the ring, but practically, it is very difficult to distinguish without sequences.

Lepiota clypeolaria EU - This similar European species is also found in North America, commonly in the east and uncommonly here in the west. The eye is not usually as distinct, and the ring on the stem is said to be less ragged.

Lepiota spheniscispora CA - not known from the PNW until sequenced in WA, this lookalike to L. clypeolaria has the larger spores of L. magnispora. It is found with oak and Eucalyptus.

Lepiota magnispora © Autumn Anglin, Lepiota clypeolaria © Jan Agosti and Yi-Min Wang (2 images), L. spheniscispora © Michael Beug

Lepiota erminea EU - A mostly all-white form of the shaggy stemmed Lepiotas turns out to be an actual unique species and not an albino form, which doesn't always happen (and it can have a somewhat brownish disc, so it is not always entirely white). It is usually called Lepiota alba but that is a newer synonym. DNA from a collection near the WA/ID border matches several reliable European sequences of L. erminea within 2 or 3 bp, which is the same amount that European sequences can vary by.

Lepiota 'erminea PNW01' - one white collection from Idaho and another that may be from Wyoming do not match any other sequences well, so there may be a second undescribed species in the interior. We need more collections.

Lepiota erminea © Andrew Parker

Lepiota subincarnata EU - This deadly poisonous species has scales on the cap and shaggy scales on the stem that often have a pinkish tinge to an otherwise warm brown colour. It stains slightly reddish (which is unusual for Lepiota and usually indicates Leucoagaricus). One collection had a cap broken up into very dark brown scales. It is closely related to the L. castanea group, with sharper scales on their stems. L. castanea was formerly thought to be deadly (but a recent study showed it is probably not). Lepiota josserandii EU may be a newer synonym of L. subincarnata. ENA and WNA ITS DNA matches a few EU type area sequences almost perfectly.

Lepiota 'helveola PNW16' - very similar to Lepiota subincarnata and I am unclear how to differentiate them. Our WA collections have ITS distinct by 10% from both the EU and ENA sequences purporting to be Lepiota helveola EU. Lepiota helveola was not tested in the recent study that found that only L. subincarnata EU could be deadly, but since the L. helveola group are some of L. subincarnata's nearest relatives, they may also be deadly poisonous.

Lepiota subincarnata © Dick Sieger, Lepiota 'helveola PNW16' © Yi-Min Wang (2 images)

Scaly stems - click to expand
Scaly stems, (some were reported as deadly poisonous, but aren't)
Species mentioned: Lepiota carinii, castanea, pilodes, fuscosquamea, clypeolarioides, cortinarius, felina, fuscovinacea, pseudoasperula.

Lepiota echinacea group - erect scales on cap

Lepiota PNW12 - This collection was extremely scaly (erect scales like Echinoderma) with a coloured juice on the young specimens. It was also large and stocky like Echinoderma but it clades with the other seven species below. It presumably has smaller spores than Echinoderma. It was found under California incense cedar and hemlock. A second collection was found under Kowhai (Sophora microphylla). The odor was fishy/farinaceous. A matching sequence has been found in California, but these sequences are very distant from everything else and probably represent a unique section of Lepiota.

Lepiota PNW12 © Matthew Koons (2 images)

These next seven clade together, and also have erect scales on the cap like Echinoderma, but they do not stain colour like true Echinoderma, and have smaller spores (~5x3u vs. ~6.5-9x3u), although note that Echinoderma PNW05 has similarly small spores. Most are smaller mushrooms, too, making them more easily differentiated from our Echinoderma species which are all usually larger. Even though an ITS only tree might place them in or near Echinoderma with low support, a 4-gene tree has shown they belong in Lepiota ("New species of Echinoderma and Lepiota (Agaricaceae) from China").

Lepiota echinacea EU - our one WA sequence matches an EU type area collection sequence except for 2 bp and 2 ambiguous locations. Collections with this name from Japan and China show an additional 1% difference and may be a unique sister species.

Lepiota carinii EU - We have an epitype sequence that a number of PNW collections match. It is close to Lepiota pseudoasperula below, but L. carnii is stockier and more likely to be mistaken for Echinoderma.

Lepiota asperula ENA - they match a type area collection of L. asperula.

Lepiota pseudoasperula EU - like a small Echinoderma that won't stain colour, with erect cap scales, found and photographed once in WA, and sequenced twice from BC. Our sequences are 2-4 bp different in ITS from EU sequences that match the short ITS1 type sequence. It's possible ours may need a different name, but for now, I don't think so.

Lepiota PNW11 - another similar species, known from 2 CA sequences and 1 WA sequence, perhaps with paler brown colours. Spores 5x3u.

Lepiota PNW15 - known from 1 OR sequence, no other matches worldwide. Its erect cap scales were few and subtle (or washed off) and the species is also a little stocky.

Lepiota PNW17 - known from 1 ID sequence, 5 bp different from an IN collection, else unknown.

Lepiota echinacea © Yi-Min Wang,     Lepiota carinii © Matthew Koons,     L. asperula © Matthew Koons

Lepiota pseudoasperula © Jacob Kalichman (3 images),     L. PNW11 © Yi-Min Wang (2 images)

Lepiota PNW15 © Yi-Min Wang (3 images),     Lepiota PNW17 © Ed Barge

Lepiota castanea EU - warm reddish-brown scales (that aren't truly erect) and sharp scales on the stem unlike the species with shaggy stem scales. It is known from boreal BC and one collection in WA.

Lepiota 'castanea PNW04' - most PNW sequences are about 10 bp different and probably represent an unnamed sister species.

Lepiota 'castanea PNW05' - This newly detected species (from BC and WA) is also similar to L. castanea. We need a way to tell it apart from the other two.

Lepiota 'castanea PNW21' - known from one collection from WA. No known way yet to differentiate it.

Lepiota PNW22 - known from one WA colleciton matching a UK sequence.

Lepiota 'pilodes PNW06' - I need a description to be able to tell this species apart from L. castanea, but the scales don't seem to be as dark reddish brown. There are written descriptions of both species, but remember, our first species is not quite L. castanea and this species is not quite L. pilodes, so that might complicate how to tell them apart. It seems to be equally uncommon as PNW04. Sequences from BC, WA and CA are about 10 bp from European material, where it was described, but no morphological or ecological differences have been detected yet so it remains to be seen if ours is a distinct species. Eastern North America seems to have a third 'species' with distinct DNA.

Lepiota castanea © Yi-Min Wang,     L. 'castanea PNW04' © Daniel Winkler,     L. 'castanea PNW05' © Danny Miller,     L. 'castanea PNW21' © Kendra Dedinsky,     L. PNW22 © Andrew Parker

Lepiota 'pilodes PNW06' © Buck McAdoo

Lepiota fuscosquamea ENA - This east coast species was never described very well, and all details except for a vague macroscopic description were not taken from the type material and are to be taken with a grain of salt. It is described macroscopically is similar to L. castanea, but not quite as delicate as those above. We have DNA from the east coast of something that vaguely looked like it could be it, but we need local collections and a type study to figure out what it is. It is rumoured to occur rarely in the PNW, but take those rumours with a grain of salt.

Lepiota cf clypeolarioides UK - Another medium species like L. fuscosquamea, and also not well understood. Described from the UK, it's not entirely clear what this species' DNA is, but I have a guess. It's been reported rarely from the PNW, and one WA collection has a sequence that might be this.

Lepiota cortinarius EU - Also medium sized species similar to L. fuscosquamea and L. clypeolarioides, but with two important differences. There is an abrupt bulb on the bottom of the stem and the veil is cobwebby like Cortinarius. Described from the EU, it's not entirely clear what this species' DNA is, but I have a guess (it may be closely related to L. clypeolarioides). It's been rumoured to occur rarely in the PNW, but those rumours are especially vague, so we need collections to prove it.

unsequenced Lepiota fuscosquamea (from Quebec) © Renée Lebeuf,     L. cf clypeolarioides © Buck McAdoo (2 images)

Lepiota 'felina PNW07' - This species may have colder or darker brown scales than the warm brown scales of some other species on the cap and stem, but sometimes it looks very similar to the others. Charles McIlvaine, the famous American mycophagist from the late 1800s reported eating it as part of his quest to try all the known mushrooms that weren't known to be deadly at the time. Fortunately for him, he found this little Lepiota instead of the deadly L. subincarnata. That may have been his closest brush with death in his years long experiment. Our species is about 6bp from European sequences, so we may conceivably need a new name. In other parts of the world, they have their own potential species similarly distant.

unsequenced Lepiota 'felina PNW07' © Steve Trudell, L. 'felina PNW07' © Michael Beug

Lepiota 'fuscovinacea PNW19' - this somewhat stocky (medium sized) species is covered in dark scales all over the cap and stem, with a purplish hue. It has only been reported twice, from OR, and the most recent collection turned out to be 6% different than sequences of the EU species, so we appear to have an unnamed sister species. This is one of the only species of Lepiota without clamps.

Lepiota 'fuscovinacea PNW19' © iNaturalist user Maria Marlin

Bald stems - click to expand
Bald stems, easily confused with Leucoagaricus. Check here first for species with brownish "eyes" of scales on the disc that break concentrically, but do not stain appreciably red. Otherwise, see Leucoagaricus. Rarely, your small, bald stemmed, brown eyed mushroom might be a Leucocoprinus (Leucocoprinus ophthalmus or 'Lepiota' oculata).
Species mentioned: Lepiota cristata, kauffmanii, castaneidisca, thiersii

Lepiota cristata EU - This species is recognized by usually orange-brown colours, a slight umbo, growth in disturbed places more often than natural places (although I have sequences of it from Bridle Trails State Park, which is pretty wild), and a strong scent that may be pleasantly sweet and fruity or unpleasant like rubber. Its ITS DNA differs by about 1.5% around the world (it was described from Europe), with no geographical pattern or other detectable differences between the specimens. That is a higher than an average species might vary (~0.5%) , but it does seem to be all one good species. However, almost identical species do occur in addition, described next.

Lepiota 'cristata PNW10' - This sister species is more often found in natural habitats, but otherwise matches L. cristata. It is found in California and BC so far. Since L. cristata has been found in wild places too, there's no good way to differentiate them beyond DNA yet.

Lepiota 'cristata PNW09' - Some BC sequences are 7-12 different from Lepiota 'cristata PNW10' (~2%). The differences are in both ITS1 and ITS2 so it seems to be a distinct species.

Lepiota kauffmanii OR - Described from Oregon in 1933 and never reported since, it is said to much resemble Lepiota cristata. This could be a good name for one of the two above unnamed species, but we'll need a type sequence or more collections to find out.

Lepiota cristata © Daniel Antone, Lepiota 'cristata PNW09' © Jonathan Frank, L. 'cristata PNW10' (from CA) © Sadie Hickey

Lepiota 'castaneidisca PNW13'/'castaneidisca PNW14' - These species are very similar to L. cristata, but tend to have more reddish brown colours. They are found in natural habitats. Practically, they can be difficult to distinguish from L. cristata, including microscopically.

There are 2 genetic species in California, cryptic and not separable except for DNA. Our first two PNW sequences, from WA, matched one of them. A third OR collection sequenced in between the two species and appears to be a 3rd species unknown except for this one collection. Even though it's only one sequence so far, the chromatogram is clean and the sequence looks good. We need more collections.

Lepiota 'castaneidisca PNW13' and 'castaneidisca PNW14' © Richard Morrison and Bruce Newhouse

Lepiota thiersii CA - with pinkish tan tones in the cap and stem, but no real scales. Not known from the PNW until it was found once in BC. I'm not positive what name to use. The sequence also matches west coast sequences of Lepiota neophana OH, but that's an east coast species and this sequence doesn't match east coast sequences of that species.

Lepiota thiersii © Vail Paterson

Other similar species exist in California and may exist in the PNW as well, that can be differentiated microscopically from the above groups.

Rarely, a bald stemmed, brown eyed mushroom will be a Leucocoprinus. Check there too for Leucocoprinus ophthalmus and 'Lepiota' oculata.

Poorly known other potential species.

Lepiota subnivosa, subfelina, concentrica and amplifolia - These species were described from the PNW back in 1912, and we're still not sure what they represent. Hopefully I'll have more information later. Lepiota subnivosa belongs in Leucoagaricus. I don't know about L. amplifolia. The other two probably do belong in Lepiota.