Echinoderma asperum

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***Echinoderma asperum*** or ***Lepiota aspera***, sometimes known commonly as the **freckled dapperling**, is a large, brownish, white-gilled mushroom, with a warty or scaly cap. It lives in woodland, or on bark chips in parks, and gardens.

## Taxonomy and naming

First described by the eminent nineteenth century mycologist Persoon as *Agaricus asper*, the **freckled dapperling** has been through several taxonomical name changes. Lucien Quélet moved it to genus *Lepiota* and since then it has long been known as ***Lepiota aspera*** (Pers.) Quel.. For a time it was placed with the other "spiny" *Lepiota* species into a separate sub-genus called *Echinoderma*, and in 1978 Marcel Bon put it into *Cystolepiota*. Then in 1991 Bon created the new genus *Echinoderma* for this and similar brownish warty species, and the new name ***Echinoderma asperum*** is almost universally accepted in more recent publications.

The species name is the Latin adjective "asper" (with feminine: "aspera" and neuter "asperum"), meaning "rough".

This same species was described by Weinmann in 1824 as *Agaricus acutesquamosus* and by Wilhelm Gottfried Lasch in 1828 as *Agaricus friesii*, giving rise to corresponding synonyms in genera *Lepiota* and *Echinoderma*. Although most authorities now consider all these names to be synonyms, Moser separated the *acutesquamosum* form from the *asperum* form as different species, on the basis that the latter has forking gills and the former not.

## Description

### General

The cap is oval at first; becoming convex, or campanulate with age. It is uniform reddish/brown, or brown at the centre; breaking up into erect pyramidal scales, on a paler ground, and up to 10 cm in diameter. The stem is paler; around 10 cm in length, and has sparse brown scales below the ring. The ring itself is large and cottony; sometimes adhering to the cap perimeter, and often taking brownish scales from there, which are seen at its edge. The gills have a tendency to fork and are free, crowded, and white, with the spore print being white also. The flesh is white, and is said to smell of rubber, earth balls (*Scleroderma citrinum*), or the mushroom *Lepiota cristata*.

### Similar species

The brownish scales on the cap and the lower part of the stem and the white gills make the genus *Echinoderma* quite distinctive, but *E. asperum* could be confused with other members, such as *E. calcicola* (which has warts the same colour as the background and non-forking gills which are less crowded) and the rare *E. hystrix* (which is darker and has dark gill-edges).

## Distribution and habitat

*Echinoderma asperum* appears during autumn in deciduous woodland, or in parks and gardens where wood chip mulch has been used. It has been recorded widely in northern temperate zones - varying between common and quite rare in Europe and North Africa, it occurs in North America, and it has been reported in Japan, Australia and New Zealand.

## Edibility

This mushroom has been shown to cause alcohol intolerance and may be poisonous. Death cases have been reported

## References

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1. ↑ Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `Phillips06`
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `Moser`
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `MarcelBon87`
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `C&D1995`
5. ↑ Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `EOL`
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `Eyssartier`
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `FN`
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `GBIF`
9. ↑ Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `NBN`
10. ↑ Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `SF1`
11. ↑ Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `asper`
12. ↑ Cite error: Invalid `<ref>` tag; no text was provided for refs named `Haberl`
13. ↑ Apsinuodijusi smailiažvynėmis žvynabudėlėmis Vilniaus ligoninėje mirė moteris. Retrieved on September 23, 2018.

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