Geastrum triplex
Systematics:- Department: Basidiomycota (Basidiomycetes)
- Subdivision: Agaricomycotina (Agaricomycetes)
- Class: Agaricomycetes (Agaricomycetes)
- Subclass: Phallomycetidae (Veselkovye)
- Order: Geastrales
- Family: Geastraceae (Geastric or Starfish)
- Genus: Geastrum (Geastrum or Zvezdovik)
- Type: Geastrum triplex (Geastrum triple)
Fruit body:
in a young mushroom, the fruiting body is rounded with a sharp tubercle. The height of the fruiting body is up to five cm, diameter is up to 3.5 centimeters. As the mushroom matures, the outer layer breaks into several thick lobed parts, beige and terracotta shades. The diameter of the unfolded fruiting body can reach 12 centimeters. The central part of the inner layer is retained as a cupped collar under the slightly flattened sessile outer layer.
In the upper part of the endoperidium, a hole is formed through which the ripened spores get out. In some star-shaped fungi, a slight depression may appear around the peristome, which is somewhat different from the rest of the outer layer. This area adjacent to the opening is called the courtyard.
At Geastrum Triple, this courtyard is quite wide and clearly defined. The courtyard is surrounded by a ragged hole, which is tightly closed in young specimens. If the young fruit body is cut exactly in the middle, then in its center you can find a light zone resembling a column in shape. The base of this column rests on the lower part of the fruiting body.
Disputes:
verrucous, globular, brown.
Pulp:
The flesh of the inner layer is fragile, juicy and soft. In the outer layer, the flesh is denser, firmer and leathery. The inner part of the endoperidium can be fibrous and whole, or powdery, consisting of capillation and spores.
Spread:
Geastrum triple is found in deciduous and mixed forests. It grows among fallen needles and leaves. Fruiting in late summer and autumn. Often, fruiting bodies persist until the next year. The mushroom is cosmopolitan. This species usually grows in large groups, sometimes even in hundreds of specimens. Fungi can often be observed simultaneously at different stages of development.
Edibility:
not consumed.
Similarity:
Due to its characteristic triple appearance, the fully open fruiting bodies of this fungus are difficult to mistake for species related to it. But, at the initial stage of opening, the mushroom can be confused with other large starfish.
Notes:
a fairly large and fleshy mushroom. The fruit body of a young mushroom has the shape of a bulb; as it ripens, the body opens with two layers of the shell. The outer layer opens star-like. The inner layer forms a collar around the central ball. Through a hole at the top of the ball, ripe spores are released outward by rain and wind. In some cases, a bowl does not form around the endoperidium, or it is not clearly expressed, which violates the characteristic appearance of this triple starfish.