Clitocybe brunneocephala
Beih. Nova Hedwigia 72: 176. 1982
Common Name: none
For description see Bigelow & 'California Mushrooms'.
Scattered to gregarious, sometimes in rings in grassy areas (lawns, pastures) or under oaks or Monterey cypress; fruiting in late fall to early spring, common in central to southern California.
Edible and good.
Clitocybe brunneocephala can be recognized by a brown cap and dingy buff gills and stipe, a fragrant odor, and its resemblance, except for coloration, to the blewit, Clitocybe nuda. It is currently known only from California. If collecting for the table, take care not to confuse it with poisonous Entoloma species of similar stature and coloration, such as Entoloma lividoalbum, Entoloma sericatum, and Entoloma rhodopolium. They have dark pinkish brown, angular spores and a nitrous or farinaceous odor.
Arora, D. (1986). Mushrooms Demystified. Ten Speed Press: Berkeley, CA. 959 p.
Bigelow, H.E. (1982). North American Species of Clitocybe. Part I. J. Cramer: Vaduz, Liechtenstein. 280 p. (Protologue) (PDF)
Desjardin, D.E., Wood, M.G. & Stevens, F.A. (2015). California Mushrooms: The Comprehensive Identification Guide. Timber Press: Portland, OR. 560 p.
Gregory, D. (2007). The genus Clitocybe of California. Masters Thesis. San Francisco State University.