Weeping Widow
Unlike the name suggests the Weeping Widow is not a poisonous mushroom but has a bitter taste making it rather inedible.
The ‘weeping’ seems to refer to the droplets of water, usually blackened by the spores, that drip from the edges of the cap.
Mushroom Type | |
Common Names | Weeping Widow (EN), Dagrau'r Weddw (CY), Kruchawica Aksamitna (PL), Könnyező Szálkásgomba (HU) |
Scientific Name | Lacrymaria lacrymabunda |
Season Start | Jun |
Season End | Nov |
Average Mushroom height (CM) | 8 |
Average Cap width (CM) | 10 |
Cap
At first bell shaped then flattening out but retaining an umbo. Tan-ochre with yellow and red-brown hints. The cap has a fibrous-wooly appearance with the fibres running from the centre of the cap to the edges where they can hang and give the edge of the cap a woolly fringe that can be stained black by the spores and can ‘weep’ droplets of water.
Gills
Initially covered in a cobweb like veil the gills start yellow-brown then turn dark brown-purple with a light edge turning black with the release of spores. Quite crowded.
Skirt
Has ring zone where the veil breaks away rather than a skirt. This can become blackened by the spores.
Possible Confusion
A distinctive mushroom.
Spore Print
Black. Ellipsoid.
Taste / Smell
Bitter. Should be cooked before consumption.
Frequency
Common.
1 comment for Weeping Widow
Completely missed the opportunity to call them Cottage caps or Thatched caps.