Pholiotina is a genus of small mushroom-forming fungi, which many sources write as Conocybe. A 2022 survey lists it among seven genera with psilocybin-producing members, based on Pholiotina cyanopus measured from a single fungarium collection (Gotvaldová et al., 2022). A 2024 genome study found the psilocybin gene cluster in Conocybe (Pholiotina) smithii (Bradshaw et al., 2024).
The names keep changing. The species once called Pholiotina or Conocybe cyanopus was moved in 2024 to a new genus, and Species Fungorum now accepts Conocybula cyanopus (Species Fungorum). Most chemistry papers still use the older names, which is why a source and date matter.
This group carries a serious warning. The clinical reference StatPearls lists Conocybe filaris among mushrooms that contain amatoxins, the liver-damaging toxins behind most mushroom deaths (Horowitz and Moss). Small brown mushrooms cannot be told apart safely by eye. If someone may have eaten one, contact a poison centre right away.
Sources
- Gotvaldová et al., 2022, International Journal of Molecular Sciences
- Bradshaw et al., 2024, PNAS
- Species Fungorum: Conocybula cyanopus record
- Horowitz and Moss, StatPearls: Amatoxin mushroom toxicity
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