The Frosty Funnel (Clitocybe phyllophila) is a medium to large white or buff funnel cap, 3-9 cm across, covered in a shiny white bloom that cracks into a fine mosaic as the cap expands. The gills run down the cream-white stem and are crowded, and the flesh has a mealy smell.
It grows on soil in leaf litter and needle litter, in broadleaf and coniferous woodland, along hedgerows and in parks and gardens, usually in groups. It is widespread but occasional in the UK, fruiting mainly from Aug to Dec, with the occasional record in Jan.
The Frosty Funnel is poisonous and must not be eaten. It is widely reported to contain muscarine, and it is easily confused with other white funnels that are dangerous, including Clitocybe rivulosa and Clitocybe dealbata, which grow in grass and are usually smaller. Calocybe gambosa (St George's Mushroom) has thicker flesh and fruits in spring. Never eat any small white funnel cap.
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Distribution
Widespread but occasional
Habitat
Scattered or in groups on soil in leaf and needle litter, in broadleaf and coniferous woodland, hedgerows, parks and gardens.
Etymology
Clitocybe comes from the Greek klitos, meaning a slope or slanting, and kybe, meaning head, referring to the funnel-shaped cap of many species in the genus. The specific epithet phyllophila comes from the Greek phyllon, meaning leaf, and philos, meaning loving, as this fungus grows in leaf litter in woodland.
Cap
Covered in a shiny white pruinose bloom that cracks as the cap expands, giving a finely tessellated (mosaic-like) surface over the buff cap beneath. Weakly hygrophanous, so the colour fades unevenly as the cap dries.
| Colour | |
|---|---|
| Shape | convex, plane, depressed |
| Surface | smooth, pruinose, dry |
| Width | 3 - 9 cm |
Gills
Crowded, white to cream gills running down the stem. They become flushed slightly pinkish with age.
| Colour | |
|---|---|
| Attachment | adnate, decurrent |
| Spacing | crowded |
Flesh
White and fibrillose, with a pleasant to slightly farinaceous (mealy) smell and a mild taste.
| Colour | |
|---|---|
| Odour | Mealy |
| Taste | Mild |
Stem
Cylindric and cream-white, with a white tomentose (felty) covering at the base.
| Colour | |
|---|---|
| Height | 3 - 6.5 cm |
| Width | 5 - 15 mm |
| Shape | cylindric |
Spores
Smooth, ellipsoid spores, 4-5.5 x 3-4 µm. The spore print is pale pinkish-buff.
| Colour | |
|---|---|
| Shape | ellipsoid |
| Ornamentation | smooth |
| Size | 4-5.5 x 3-4 μm |
Classification
- ↳ Phylum: Basidiomycota
- ↳ Subphylum: Agaricomycotina
- ↳ Class: Agaricomycetes
- ↳ Subclass: Agaricomycetidae
- ↳ Order: Agaricales
- ↳ Genus: Clitocybe
Synonyms
- Agaricus cerussatus Fr.
- Agaricus cerussatus Secr.
- Agaricus phyllophila Weinm.
- Agaricus phyllophilus Pers.
- Agaricus pithyophilus Fr.
- Clitocybe candicans var. phyllophila J. Lange
- Clitocybe cerussata (Fr.) Gillet
- Clitocybe cerussata (Fr.) P. Kumm.
- Clitocybe cerussata var. pithyophila (Fr.) J.E. Lange
- Clitocybe phyllophila (Fr.) P. Kumm.
- Clitocybe pithyophila (Fr.) Gillet
- Clitocybe pythiophila (Fr.) Gillet
- Collybia phyllophila (Pers.) Z.M. He & Zhu L. Yang
Reference Sources
T. Læssøe, J. H. Peterson (2019) Fungi of Temperate Europe Vol. 1. Princeton University Press.
G. Kibby (2020) Mushrooms and Toadstools of Britain & Europe Vol. 2. Geoffrey Kibby.
