Lycoperdon pratense - Meadow Puffball

Taxonomy

Phylum: Basidiomycota

Class: Agaricomycetes

Order: Agaricales

One of the most common puffball fungi found in meadows, Lycoperdon pratense looks rather like a baby Giant Puffball when viewed from the top, although in the early stages of development its skin is scurfy whereas its larger cousins have smooth skins. Both the Meadow Puffball and the Giant Puffball are edible, so confusing the two is not disastrous. To differentiate these puffballs look underneath: the Meadow Puffball has a stump-like stem whereas there is no stem on a Giant Puffball.

Synonyms include Vascellum pratense and Lycoperdon depressum.

Identification Guide

Fruitbody	An elongated ovoid form with a short sterile stem typically half the width of the fruitbody; stem separated from fertile upper section by a skin-like membrane; outer surface white and scurfy when young, becoming smooth; eventually turning brown and rupturing at the apex; internally white at first, turning olive and finally brown as the spore mass matures; spores disperse through a large apical hole. Size: 4 to 8cm across and 2 to 4cm tall.
Stem	1 to 2cm tall and typically 1.5cm diameter, swollen towards the base; colour as the fertile head but with shorter spines.
Spores	Light brown, eventually becoming dark brown when fully mature.
Odour/taste	Not significant.
Habitat	In permanent pastures, old lawns, golf courses and parks; occasionally also on roadside verges and in dune slacks.
Season	June to October.
Occurrence	Common and widespread.
Similar species	Lycoperdon perlatum is covered in warts rather than spines. Lycoperdon pyriforme occurs on stumps and buried wood. Lycoperdon mammiforme has a surface covered initially in woolly patches.