Specimen 4: Lycoperdon perlatum

Figure 1: Plump Lycoperdon perlatum sitting under a tree.

Figure 2: Lycoperdon perlatum looks pear-shaped with its sterile base holding it above the ground.

Figure 3: Tiny spines cover the surface of Lycoderdon perlatum.

Name: Lycoperdon perlatum
Phylum: Basidomycota
Family: Agaricaceae
Common Name: Common Puffball
Collection Date:  October 10, 2015
Habitat: Beech-maple forest, under a tree.
Location: James H. Barrows Field Station, Hiram, Ohio
Description: Dirty white bulb about 3 cm tall. Tiny spikes cover the top of its peridium. Yellowish, white gleba. About 3 centimeters high.
Collector: Linden Glaze

Key used: Miller, Orson K. Jr. Mushrooms of North America. Chanticleer Press, New York
Keying steps:

Gastromycetes Key pg. 289
1. b. Not slimy, no disagreeable odor.... 2
2. b. Fruiting body round.... 4
4. Stalk no present, but a short sterile base.... Lycoperdales

Key to True Puffballs pg. 299
1. Young puffball show white spore mass
5. Nearly pear-shaped, less than 7 cm thick.... 16
16. b. Outer layer covered in spines, not on wood..... 17
17. a. Outer skin dullish white, covered in pointed spines..... L. perlatum