Psilocybin-containingHymenogastraceaeNew ZealandAustralia
Psilocybe subaeruginosa
The main potent wood-loving Psilocybe of Australia and New Zealand.
Regional status: Native to southeastern Australia; established in New Zealand
- Cap
- Conical to convex with an umbo, 1.5-5 cm, caramel to deep brown, hygrophanic.
- Gills
- Adnate, pale then dark purple-brown.
- Stem
- 50-120 mm, whitish, fibrous, blue at the base.
- Flesh
- Blue where cut.
- Spore print
- Dark purple-brown
- Habitat
- Wood chips, pine and eucalypt debris, garden mulch.
- Distribution
- Southern and eastern Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand.
- Season
- April to August (southern autumn and winter).
- Bruising
- Strong blue-black.
- Odour
- Farinaceous.
- Potency
- Very potent
Key features
- ▪Long fibrous bluing stem
- ▪Wood chip and forest debris habitat
- ▪Southern hemisphere autumn fruiting
Field tests
- Spore print must be dark purple-brown
- Check for rusty spores dropped on lower caps, which indicate Galerina
Edibility
Contains psilocybin and psilocin.
Warning
Galerina marginata occurs across Australasia in the same wood debris and is lethal.
Photo and feature-based identification is probabilistic. Never consume a wild mushroom on the basis of an app result — confirm with an experienced mycologist.