White spore print
Saprophytic, often on litter
“Marcescence” is the ability to revive with moisture
Flat to convex caps (not conical)
Wiry stems
Ecology (substrates and ecosystems) are important

White spore print
Odor is important
Gills not decurrent
Saprophytes
Conical, bonnet, or bell-shaped
Stem thin but not wiry or tough
Most are muted colors

Oak-loving Gymnopus (Gymnopus dryophilus)
Cross-veined Troop Mushroom (Xeromphalina kauffmanii)
Common Mycena (Mycena galericulata)
Clustered Bonnet (Mycena inclinata)

Pine Bonnet (Mycena silvae-nigrae)

Orange Mycena (Mycena leaiana)

Trooping Crumble Cap (Coprinellus disseminatus)

Bleeding Fairy Helmet (Mycena haematopus)

Conical Brittlestem (Parasola conopilea)

Mycenoid Mushrooms

**Oak-loving Gymnopus (Gymnopus dryophilus)**

Notes: Super common! Synonym Collybia dryophila
Habitat & Ecology: saprophytic; on litter, twigs and well-decayed wood; in coniferous, deciduous, or mixed forest; spring to fall
Cap: 2-6cm; convex to flat; surface; margin wavy and incurved when young; pancake tan with orange tones; moist
Gills: attached or almost free; crowded; white, maybe pinkish
Stem: 1-10cm long; slightly wider at the base; fibrous and stringy; glabrous on the surface; whiter close to the apex, tanning at the base; might be flattened and/or hollow; white rhizomorphs at the base (not cottony like mycelium, more stringy and root-like
Flesh: white; thin
Spore print: white, maybe cream-colored
Look-a-likes: Gymnopus subsulphureus is similar and found in similar habitats, but has yellow tones on the cap, gills, and stem and the rhizomorphs at the base are pink-yellow-brownish; Tufted Collybia (Gymnopus confluens) has a skinnier and longer stem, reddish brown cap that fades to be very pale, stem has a fuzzy white coating and it grows in bouqetlike clusters; Rhodocollybia lentinoides is similar in form but has saw-tooth edged gills, a lined margin on the cap, a greyish stem and grows under spruce.

**Yellowleg Bonnet (Mycena epipterygia var. lignicola)**

Notes:
Habitat & Ecology: saprophytic; on well-decayed coniferous wood; summer and fall
Cap: <1in wide; bonnet with a knob; surface lined/furrowed; margin flares with age; dark yellow, grayish green, faded; viscid
Gills: attached; distant; white to yellow
Stem: long and skinny; paler than cap; smooth; viscid
Flesh: thin; mealy, cucumber smell
Spore print: white
Look-a-likes: Mycena epipterygia var. epipterygia lacks odor, is on the ground, and has brown coloring on the cap; Mycena epiptergia var. viscosa has a strong smell and reddens with age.

**Cross-veined Troop Mushroom (Xeromphalina kauffmanii)**

Notes:
Habitat & Ecology: saprophytic; grows in large groups on deciduous stumps and logs; spring to fall
Cap: convex to flat with a depression; surface smooth, becoming lined or pleated; orange, paling at the margin
Gills: run down the stem; close to distant; cross-veins between the gills; pale yellow
Stem: tapers to base; top half yellow, bottom half brown; smooth and wiry; might have orange basal mycelium
Flesh: yellow; smell not distinctive
Spore print: white
Look-a-likes: Xeromphalina campanella is indistinguishable but grows on coniferous stumps and logs, like hemlock.

**Common Mycena (Mycena galericulata)**

Notes:
Habitat & Ecology: saprophytic; grows in loose or dense clusters on deciduous, well-decayed logs, stumps, or buried wood; spring to fall
Cap: large for Mycena; bonnet, bell-shaped with a broad knob; surface uneven, bumpy, or radially lined; margin becomes frayed; brown, fading greatly to all white with a tan center; dry, maybe tacky
Gills: barely attached; subdistant; cross-veins present; white, or uniformly pink
Stem: equal; white near apex, brown below; bald and glabrous; sometimes rooting base, especially if on buried wood; dry and hollow
Flesh: white-grey, unchanging; mealy smell
Spore print: white
Look-a-likes: Clustered Bonnet (Mycena inclinata) can stain yellow on the cap and stem, and has a fringed margin.

Clustered Bonnet (Mycena inclinata)

Notes:
Habitat & Ecology: saprophytic; grows in loose or dense clusters on deciduous, well-decayed logs, stumps or buried wood; spring to fall
Cap: large for Mycena; bonnet, bell-shaped with a broad knob; surface radially lined or grooved; surface; margin has rounded, fringe-like “teeth” when young; brown and might stain or discolor yellow – can fade greatly; tacky
Gills: barely attached; subdistant; cross-veins present; white-grey, maybe pinkish
Stem: equal and smooth; pale yellow above and reddish brown below; base has white clumps of fibrils when young; no rooting
Flesh: strong mealy smell
Spore print: white
Look-a-likes: Common Mycena (Mycena galericulata) might have a rooting base, no fringe on the margin and no yellow staining.

Pine Bonnet (Mycena silvae-nigrae)

Orange Mycena (Mycena leaiana)

Trooping Crumble Cap (Coprinellus disseminatus)

Bleeding Fairy Helmet (Mycena haematopus)

Conical Brittlestem (Parasola conopilea)

Marasmioid Mushrooms

**Oak-leaf Pinwheel (Collybiopsis quercophila syn. Marasmius quercophilus)**

Notes: not very much information out there about identification
Habitat & Ecology: saprophytic; oak leaf litter
Cap: white
Gills: attached, veined; distant
Stem: hairlike
Flesh:
Spore print:
Look-alikes: Fairy Parachutes (Marasmiellus candidus)…

**Orange-Yellow Marasmius (Marasmius strictipes)**

Notes: largest Marasmius
Habitat & Ecology: saprophytic; alone or in small groups in leaf litter; deciduous forests; summer and fall
Cap: convex to flat, never bell-shaped, broadly knobbed; smooth surface; margin faintly lined and uplifted; yellow or orange-yellow and hygrophanous (drying to be darker in the center and paler yellow along the margin); dry/moist
Gills: notched, nearly free; crowded; white, pale yellow of pinkish
Stem: thick, hollow, straight and equal; white and pale yellow; finely dusted; white basal mycelium; dry
Flesh: thin; radish smell
Spore print: white
Look-alikes:

**Dairy Matchstick or Hairy Long Stem Marasmius (Rhizomarasmius pyrrhocephalus)**

Notes:
Habitat & Ecology: saprophytic; on leaf litter and woody debris; deciduous forests (especially oak-hickory); spring to fall – one of the earliest agarics in the spring
Cap: plano-convex to flat; smooth or wrinkly with fine lines or grooves; lined margin; orangeish brown, often with a darker center and lighter towards the margin; thin!
Gills: narrowly attached to notched; close to subdistant; white to yellow-cream
Stem: tough, thin, and deeply rooted; dark but cream-colored at the top and blending down to dark stem; velvety, covered in short hairs; dry
Flesh: thin; smell not distinctive
Spore print: white
Look-alikes: Marasmius sullivantii has a smooth stem and is brighter orange and the cap is not lined

**Collared Parachute (Marasmius rotula)**

Notes: bundt-cake-shaped mushrooms
Habitat & Ecology: saprophytic; usually clustered on sticks and woody debris; deciduous forest; spring to fall
Cap: convex, pleated (radially grooved), and with a deep central depression– from the side they look to have a flat top and squarish sides; smooth surface; white and brown dot in the depression; dry
Gills: gills are attached to a “collar” around the stem; distant; yellow-white colored
Stem: equal; shiny, wiry, and black except at the apex; dry
Flesh: thin; not distinctive
Spore print: white
Look-alikes: Marasmius capillaris grows on oak leaf litter.

**Orange Pinwheel (Marasmius siccus)**

Notes:
Habitat & Ecology: saprophytic; leaf litter and woody debris; deciduous forests, sometimes in needle duff of White Pine; summer and fall
Cap: bell-shaped with radial grooves (pleating); smooth, wrinkly, and slightly roughened surface; margin entire; orange, maybe faded; dry
Gills: attached or free; distant; white to pale yellow
Stem: slender and tough; dark and whitish above; wiry and smooth; basal mycelium white; dry
Flesh: thin; smell not distinctive
Spore print: white
Look-alikes:

**Black-stalked Marasmius (Tetrapyrgos nigripes syn. Marasmiellus nigripes)**

Notes:
Habitat & Ecology: saprophytic; leaf litter and twigs; deciduous forests, maybe mixed forest; summer and fall
Cap: convex to flat and wavy; smooth or powdery and often with wrinkled pleating; white with blue-gray tones; dry and rubbery
Gills: broadly attached to subdecurrent; distant; wiggly arrangement and with lots of cross veins; white to cream, sometimes discoloring red
Stem: straight, thin, flexible; no basal mycelium but may be emerging from a disc base; white at first, becoming blue/black from the bottom up (hence the name black-footed); covered in tiny white hairs; dry
Flesh: thin, rubbery; smell not distinctive
Spore print: white
Look-alikes: Fairy Parachutes (Marasmiellus candidus) look similar but have more distant gills, white basal mycelium at attachment, and do not have a straight stem longer than the cap.

**Fairy Parachutes (Marasmiellus candidus)**

Notes:
Habitat & Ecology: saprophytic; closely grouped on stems, twigs, and woody debris; deciduous and coniferous forests; summer and fall
Cap: convex to flat and becoming wavy; thin and fragile; radially wrinkly but not grooved; white and staining pink or yellow with age; dry
Gills: broadly attached to decurrent; irregularly spaced, very distant, with lots of cross veins; white, becoming pink with age
Stem: equal, short, fleshy, can be attached to cap off-center, and is often curved; small pad of white cottony mycelium at point of attachment; white and maybe dark at the base; frosty surface; dry
Flesh: thin and white; smell not distinctive
Spore print:
Look-alikes: Black-stalked Marasmius (Tetrapyrgos nigripes) gills are closer together and the stem is longer, straight, and comes directly out of substrate (not cottony mycelium).