 The species was first described in 1886 by French mycologist Narcisse Théophile Patouillard as Coprinus auricomus. It was transferred to Parasola in 2001 when molecular phylogenetics was used to sort the coprinoid genera (i.e., Coprinus and the segregate genera Coprinopsis, Coprinellus, and Parasola) into natural monophyletic groups. According to the nomenclatural database MycoBank, Parasola hansenii, described by Jakob Emanuel Lange in 1915 and named in honor of Danish mycologist Emil Christian Hansen, is a facultative synonym (based on a different type). Although this synonymy is accepted by several authorities, P.D. Orton and Roy Watling disagree, suggesting that C. hansenii is a forgotten species that requires reanalysis.
