Glistening inkcap - Coprinellus micaceus
- The Foraging Course Company
- 5 days ago
- 2 min read
Edible mushroom - novice/intermediate Season - all year Common names glistening inkcap, mica cap, brownie mushroom, glistening coprinus
Scientific name meaning: Coprinellus comes from the Greek Kupros, meaning dung, and the Latin suffix Ellus, which makes the noun it is attached to diminutive. This is because of glistening inkcap's link to the genus Coprinus, many species within which grow on dung. So, the name is a reference to looking like a small Coprinus. Micaceus is derived from the Latin Mica, meaning small crumb or morsel
Habitat  The glistening inkcap is a saprobic fungi grows on dead or dying deciduous wood. |
Overall structure and growth  Glistening inkcap is usually found as a mass of fruit bodies tightly packed together. The individual mushroom fruit bodies have bell-shaped caps and do not last for more than a couple of days. |
Cap  Starting off egg-shaped, the tan-coloured cap has a darker centre, a striated surface, and is covered in small white particles (the remains of a universal veil). These particles glisten if moved around in the light. With age, the cap becomes more bell-shaped, greyer in colour and the particles more dispersed. Reaching 2 to 4cm wide, it flattens out before the gills deliquesce. |
Gills and spores  The adnexed to free gills start off white and crowded. As the mushroom matures the gills turn purple-brown and eventually black before deliquescing (dissolving into a sticky ink-like substance). The spore colour is dark brown to black. |
Stem  The stem is fragile and white, but brownish near the base. It is 3 to 10cm tall and 2 to 6mm wide. |
Flesh, smell and taste  The flesh is white to white-brown to grey. The smell and taste is mild and mushroomy. |
Possible lookalikes  Could be confused the common inkcap (Coprinus atramentaria), pictured, is considered edible with caution and poisonous when consumed with alcohol. It has much more of a grey cap and no glistening particles. Could also be mistaken with the fairy inkcap (Coprinellus dessiminatus) but its fruits are much smaller and lack the white grains. It is also edible. |
Use as a food Should be consumed before it deliquesces. Dissolves quite quickly upon cooking and not considered the best tasting, so best used as a soup or stock base Hazards This mushroom must be cooked before it deliquesces. It also bioaccumulates heavy metals such as lead and cadmium, so avoid harvesting from roadsides or areas known to have heavy metals present
Use in herbal medicine and medicine A limited amount of research has been undertaken into the use of glistening inkcap in the inhibition of the growth of certain cancers. It is also believed to have antimicrobial properties, based on research undertaken on its close relatives
If you are suffering from any ailment or need medical advice, please see your General Practitioner Other uses None known at time of writing Importance to other species Provides food for a number of invertebrates and their larvae
Always stay safe when foraging. You need to be 100% sure of your identification, 100% sure that your foraged item is edible, and 100% sure that you are not allergic to it (it is good practice to always try a small amount of any new food you are consuming). If in doubt, leave it out!
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