''Gastropila fumosa'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

puffball Puffballs are a type of fungus featuring a ball-shaped fruit body that bursts on impact, releasing a cloud of dust-like spores when mature. Puffballs belong to the division Basidiomycota and encompass several genera, including '' Calvatia'', '' ...

in the family

Agaricaceae The Agaricaceae are a family of basidiomycete fungi and include the genus ''Agaricus'', as well as basidiomycetes previously classified in the families Tulostomataceae, Lepiotaceae, and Lycoperdaceae. Taxonomy The family Agaricaceae was publishe ...

. It was first described as ''Calvatia fumosa'' by American mycologist

Sanford Myron Zeller Sanford Myron Zeller (19 October 1885 – 4 November 1948) was an American mycologist. Born in Coldwater, Michigan, Zeller was educated at Lawrence College in Wisconsin, then Greenville College in Illinois, from which he received a Bachelor of S ...

in 1947, and later transferred to '' Gastropila'' in 1976. Some authors place it instead in the genus ''

Handkea ''Handkea'' is a genus of puffball mushrooms in the family Agaricaceae. In 1989, German mycologist Hanns Kreisel described the genus ''Handkea'' to include species of ''Calvatia'' with distinct microscopic features, including a unique type of capi ...

'',

circumscribed In geometry, the circumscribed circle or circumcircle of a polygon is a circle that passes through all the vertices of the polygon. The center of this circle is called the circumcenter and its radius is called the circumradius. Not every polyg ...

Hanns Kreisel Hanns Kreisel (16 July 1931 – 18 January 2017) was a German mycologist and professor emeritus. He was born in Leipzig in 1931. Kreisel was a professor at the University of Greifswald. His field was the classification of fungi, where he has studi ...

in 1989.

Description

The

fruit body In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

is anywhere from golf ball size to baseball size, round to oval, broad, thick, at first smooth and white, soon becoming grayish to brownish. The

spores In biology, a spore is a unit of sexual or asexual reproduction that may be adapted for dispersal and for survival, often for extended periods of time, in unfavourable conditions. Spores form part of the life cycles of many plants, algae, ...

are firm and white at first, then yellowish or olive, and then dark brown and powdery. The species has an unpleasant smell while developing. Its edibility is unknown.

Distribution and habitat

The species fruits singly, in groups, or in small clusters on soil in spruce- fir forests in the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico ...

and westward in the summer and fall.

References

External links

* Agaricaceae Fungi described in 1947 Fungi of North America {{agaricaceae-stub