The first time I realized mushrooms could be magic, I spent a great deal of time picking any mushroom I saw, hoping to get lucky, not knowing what I should be looking for. Beginner mushroom hunters, especially those of the psychedelic persuasion, often start out foraging full of a similar hope. However, if this hope isn’t tempered, either with a little fear or a lot of technical knowledge, it’s a dangerous mindset to have. Determination to find something specific can sometimes override your critical faculties, causing you to ignore key features that might be warning signs not to consume something. Add to this the problem of poor-quality identification apps or AI-written “foraging books,” and it’s never been easier to place your trust in the wrong place.
In this AI-free article, we’ll take an honest look at how to correctly identify Psilocybe cubensis, one of the most widely cultivated magic mushrooms. We’ll also consider some potentially harmful look-alikes that you might encounter, with tips on how to tell them apart.
P. cubensis Identifying Features
When identifying any mushroom, psychedelic or otherwise, a common technique practiced by many field mycologists is to start broad then get specific. As you focus your attention from broader questions like “Am I in the right habitat?” and “Is it the right time of year?” to more specific ones, you should constantly be whittling down your list of possibilities—from the species it could be to the species you end up actually finding. With this in mind, let’s start with the broad questions.
Where and When do P. cubensis Grow?
Psilocybe cubensis is a pan-tropical species, meaning that it can grow anywhere with a tropical climate—this means year-round warm temperatures, high humidity and frequent rainfall. Compare a typical tropical climate map to P. cubensis distribution maps, and you’ll find a fairly high degree of overlap—so find a spot close to you and start looking. If you’re nowhere near P. cubensis habitat, you might want to consider other more temperate species like Psilocybe semilanceata or Psilocybe cyanescens.
Psilocybe cubensis usually grows directly from cattle dung or from nutrient-rich adjacent pasture, so if you’re deep in the jungle or on a rocky mountain, you’re also not in the right place to find this particular species—though that’s not to say these habitats won’t contain other interesting psychedelic mushrooms!
READ: How to Harvest Mushrooms: A How To Guide
It’s also worth noting that other psychedelic species share a similar habitat to P. cubensis, such as the dung-loving Panaeolus cyanescens or the pasture-growing Psilocybe mexicana. Though such species are relatively easy to distinguish from each other, if your goal is “psychedelic mushrooms,” it’s worth familiarizing yourself with these species for some bonus foraging finds. However, note that the potency between these can vary considerably!
The next thing to think about is the season. Psilocybe cubensis usually grows between February and December in the northern hemisphere, and November to April in the southern hemisphere. If that doesn’t sound long enough to look, keep in mind that a good haul can be dried and last you through the off-season.
Right Place, Right Time.
Once we’re confident we’ve found a good site at the right time of year, we’re ready to start hunting for actual mushrooms! If you’re looking for magic mushrooms, but not too concerned about the specific species, you can use the so-called Stametsian rule to find what you’re after:
“If a gilled mushroom has purplish brown to black spores, and the flesh bruises bluish, the mushroom in question is very likely a psilocybin-producing species.”
This rule was first published in 1996 by Paul Stamets in “Psilocybin Mushrooms Of The World”. Though it doesn’t help you identify P. cubensis specifically, it will put you safely under the umbrella of “hallucinogenic mushrooms that are unlikely to poison you”. However this same rule will exclude psilocybin producing species like Pluteus americanus, Gymnopilus junonius or G. aeruginosus—these mushrooms will still likely bruise blue, but have different colored spore prints.
P. Cubensis Identifying Features, in Detail
The cap of wild-grown cubensis rarely exceeds 3 inches (8 cm) in diameter, with young specimens having a rounded (convex) or slightly pointed (conic), sometimes with a raised central point called a papilla. As the mushrooms mature, this cap becomes broader and flatter, and the central papilla (if present) can also broaden into a central mound called an umbo. The cap is smooth (the genus name “Psilocybe” is a Greek portmanteau for “bare head” which refers to the cap’s appearance), and changes color from reddish-brown through golden-brown, to yellowish and almost white with age. The cap tends to be darker when wet (hygrophanous) and can feel slimy or sticky (viscid).
The gills sit closely together under the cap, and change from gray to purplish black as the spores develop. If you cut the mushroom in half, you’ll see that the gills attach to the stem broadly with the edge at right angles to the stem (adnate), or gill edge rounds in towards the stem forming a narrow attachment point (adnexed). In some cases the gills will appear barely attached to the stem at all (seceding).
The stipe can grow up to 6 inches (15 cm) tall and is usually around ¼ – ½ inch (0.5 – 1.5 cm) thick. If you cut the stem in half down the middle, the inside will be hollow (fistulose) or loosely filled with thin, fluffy mycelium. The stipe begins as white in color but can become yellowish with age. The white membrane (veil) that covers the gills when the mushroom is young usually remains attached to the stem, forming what’s known as an annulus, and becomes purplish-black in color as the spores fall on it from the gills above.
The spores of P. cubensis are purplish-black and will usually leave a dense spore print if the mushrooms are harvested at the right time, just after the veil pulls away from the gills. In older specimens, the spores will often stain the cap a similar color. Though this could hamper identification, the spore stains usually form streaks or patches, which can be rubbed off to help with identification. If you have access to a microscope, the spores appear as a flattened sphere (sub-ellipsoid) and measure 11.5–17 by 8–11.5 μm.
As for many psilocybin-containing species, the cap and stipe of P. cubensis both bruise a vivid blue in older specimens or when handled. Some describe the smell and taste of P. cubensis as similar to fresh wheat flour (farinaceous), but only taste them if you’re sure of other identifying features first!
Common P. cubensis Look-alike Species
Due to the range of colors displayed by P. cubensis (browny-orange to yellowish-white) and its different preferred habitats (growing both on dung and from nutrient rich grass), there are quite a few look-alikes that may resemble this mushroom at different stages of growth. Though some can be more easily excluded than others, there is one handy way to know for sure—none of the mushrooms listed below will bruise blue!
Non-poisonous look-alikes
Though these mushrooms are unlikely to poison you, they certainly won’t get you high.
Agrocybe pediades – Common fieldcap
Found growing in grassy fields of more temperate regions of North America and Europe, the yellow-orange color of this mushroom might throw off your identification. But the stem lacks the annulus found in P. cubensis, its spore print is dark brown and it doesn’t bruise blue.
Candolleomyces candolleanus – Pale brittlestem
This mushroom also grows in more temperate regions of Europe and America. Though it’s more commonly associated with trees, it can grow on nearby grassland and the whitish yellow color resembles mature P. cubensis. The spore print is a similar color to that of P. cubensis, but the cap is crumbly in texture, the stem lacks an annulus, and this mushroom doesn’t bruise blue.
READ: Types of Magic Mushrooms: 10 Shroom Strains You Should Know About
Bolbitius titubans – Sunny side up or yellow fieldcap
The bright yellow egg shaped cap of younger mushrooms clearly looks nothing like P. cubensis, but as this mushroom matures into a broader yellowish-white it can easily be mistaken. The spore print of this mushroom is rusty-brown, the stem lacks an annulus, and it won’t bruise blue.
Deconica spp (eg D. coprophila – Dung-loving psilocybe)
The whole genus of Deconica was once considered synonymous with Psilocybe, with many from this genus resembling young P. cubensis due to their similar brown color. Deconica coprophila is a particularly easily misidentified species, as like P. cubensis it grows on dung—and confusingly some guides list the common name for this mushroom as the “dung-loving psilocybe” despite its lack of hallucinogenic properties. The spore print of D. coprophila is a similar purplish brown, though P. cubensis is a lot more black. If in doubt, the lack of blue bruising should be your key distinguishing feature for these mushrooms.
Poisonous look-alikes
Some guidebooks list these look-alike mushrooms as edible, but others report it to be poisonous. We’d recommend playing it safe and staying away!
Stropharia coronilla – Garland roundhead
Another P. cubensis look-alike that’s found mostly in the US and Europe, which can easily be mistaken for older yellowish-white specimens. To add to the confusion, this species has a similar coloured spore print. The key distinguishing features are the lack of blue bruising and the fact that its annulus has a crown-like (striated) upper surface, which is how this mushroom gets its name.
Protostropharia semiglobata – Dung roundhead
As the name implies this mushroom grows directly from dung in many parts of the world and, due to its size and color, resembles younger specimens of P. cubensis. The spores are a similar purple-black color, making a spore print a less reliable way of identification. Though the annulus is more delicate in this species, ultimately the lack of blue bruising might be your best distinguishing feature.
Psychedelic lookalikes
There are some psilocybin containing species that closely resemble P. cubensis which are worth getting familiar with. These include the South African Psilocybe natalensis, which has a less firmly attached annulus and doesn’t fruit directly off dung; and Panaeolus cyanescens which grows on dung, but is smaller and has a thinner stem.
