Conical

Fibrecaps: the main wearers of cones

As M.Ya. Zerova stresses, the textbook example of a conical cap is the notorious poisonous genus of fibrecaps (Inocybe).

- Deadly fibrecap (Inocybe erubescens/patouillardii): One of the most dangerous mushrooms of spring and summer. When young, its cap is a perfect, sharp cone; with age it flattens out a little, but the sharp umbo in the center stays for good.

- Toxicity: Fibrecaps contain huge doses of muscarine (far more than the fly agaric). Poisoning causes profuse sweating, salivation, cramps and a slowed heartbeat, and in severe cases (without the antidote, atropine) it can lead to respiratory arrest.

Most fibrecaps are small and have this "tent-like", conical architecture, which should be a "Stop!" signal for any forager.

Other "conical" mushrooms

1. Funeral bell (Galerina marginata): Deadly poisonous. When young, its cap is often shaped like a rounded cone or a little bell.

2. Webcaps (Cortinarius): Many species (including the deadly poisonous webcaps that contain orellanine) have a sharp umbo in the center of the cap, giving it a conical or semi-conical shape.

3. Black morel (Morchella conica): An edible spring ascomycete. Its spongy cap is a tall, strongly elongated cone (unlike the rounded Common morel).