Psilocybe pratensis P.D. Orton , Notes Royal Bot. Gard. Edinburgh 29: 120. 1969.

macroscopy:

Pileus 8-18 mm, convex then plano-convex or almost applanate, sometimes subumbonate, with deflexed margin, hygrophanous, indistinctly translucently striate, uniformly red- or yellow-brown (Mu. 2.5 YR (2.5/2-)2.5/4; 10 YR 4/4), pallescent on drying (centre 5 YR 5/8, middle part 5 YR 6/6, margin 2.5 YR 3/4-6 finally 10 YR 7/6), strongly viscid with thick, separable pellicle, without veil. Lamellae, L = 22-24, l = 3, normally distant, sinuate-emarginate with decurrent tooth, never really decurrent, ventricose to broadly ventricose, red-brown (5 YR 3/3. 4/4.2.5 YR 3/4, 2.5 YR 3/4-2.5/4), with even to eroded, concolorous or slightly paler edge. Stipe 10-20 x 1-2 mm, cylindrical, straight to flexuous, or slightly tapering upwards, or slightly subbulbous at base, pale brown (10 YR 8/4) white pruinose at apex, paler fibrillose-flocculose below. Smell and taste indistinct or fungoid.

microscopy:

Spores 8.5-12 x 6.0-7.5 x 5.5-6.5 µm, slightly flattened, Q = 1.3-1.75, Qav = 1.5, ovoid to slightly hexagonal in frontal view, Q = 1.45-1.8, Qav = 1.7, ellipsoid to oblong, often somewhat amygdaliform in side-view, with thick, brown wall (- 2.0 µm), with large, apical germ pore. Basidia 25-27.5 x 5.5-6.5 µm, 4-spored, clamped. Lamella edge sterile. Cheilocystidia 20-31 x 5.0-6.5 µm, lageniform, with blunt, 1.5-3.0 µm wide apex. Pileipellis an up to 250 µm thick ixocutis, made up of narrow, cylindrical, 1.5-3.5 µm wide hyphae; subpellis compact, made up of inflated elements, 20-75 x 5.0-15 µm with brown, incrusting pigment. Pileitrama regular, made up of inflated elements, 30-110 x 4.0-12(-17) µm. Stipitipellis a hardly differentiated cutis of narrow, cylindrical, 2.0-7.0 µm wide hyphae with brown-yellow walls. Caulocystidia present at apex only, cylindrical to clavate, 12-34 x 6.0-7.0 µm. Clamp-connections abundant.

ecology:

Saprotrophic, in groups amongst Ammophila arenaria in primary dune valleys along the coast.

distribution:

Very rare in western Europe.

comment:

Psilocybe pratensis can easily be distinguished by the large spores and thick, viscid, separable pellicle of the pileus. Psilocybe montana var. macrospora has similar spores, but a rather dry pileal surface without separable pellicle.