Whitish talker (Clitocybe rivulosa) photo and description

Talker whitish (Clitocybe rivulosa)

Whitish talker, bleached, or discolored (lat. Clitocybe dealbata), also Reddish talker, or furrowed (lat. Clitocybe rivulosa) is a species of mushrooms included in the genus Govorushka (Clitocybe) of the family Ryadovkovye (Tricholomataceae).

The whitish talker grows on the soil or on the litter in places with grass cover – in meadows and pastures or on edges, clearings and clearings in deciduous and mixed forests, as well as in parks. Fruiting bodies appear in groups, sometimes very large; form “witch circles”. Distributed in the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere.

Season from mid-July to November.

The cap of the talker is whitish ∅ 2-6 cm, in young mushrooms, with a tucked edge, later – in old mushrooms – or, often with a wavy edge. The color of the cap varies from powdery white and whitish-grayish in young mushrooms to buffy in mature ones. Mature mushrooms have indistinct grayish spots on the cap. The surface of the cap is covered with a thin powdery coating, which is easily removed; in wet weather it is a little slimy, in dry weather it is silky and shiny; when dry, it cracks and becomes lighter.

The flesh (3-4 mm thick on the cap disc), and, whitish, does not change color when cut. The taste is inexpressive; musty smell.

The stem of the talker is whitish, 2–4 cm long and 0,4–0,6 cm ∅, cylindrical, slightly tapering towards the base, straight or curved, solid in young mushrooms, later hollow; the surface is whitish or grayish, in places covered with hazel-colored spots, darkening when pressed, longitudinally fibrous.

The plates are frequent, whitish, later grayish-whitish, becoming light yellow in maturity, descending on the stem, 2-5 mm wide.

Spore powder is white. Spores 4-5,5 × 2-3 µm, ellipsoid, smooth, colorless.

Deadly poisonous mushroom!

It grows on the soil or on the litter in places with grass cover – in meadows and pastures or on edges, clearings and clearings in deciduous and mixed forests, as well as in parks. Fruiting bodies appear in groups, sometimes very large; form “witch circles”. Distributed in the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere.

Season from mid-July to November.

In the literature, two species have often been distinguished – Clitocybe rivulosa with a pinkish cap and plates and a short stem and Clitocybe dealbata with a grayish color and a longer stem. These factors turned out to be insufficient for separation; the color of hygrophan talkers significantly depends on the degree of wetting. Molecular genetic studies have also concluded that there is one polymorphic species.