Species details
Black saddle
Helvella atra
Inedible
Photo: Bjorn Sothmann · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Photo source · License
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Description
A dark brown to nearly black saddle fungus with a saddle-shaped head and relatively smooth dark stem.
Identification features
Fruitbody up to about 10 cm tall. Cap 1.5–4 cm wide, saddle-shaped with two upward-pointing lobes, grey- to black-brown or nearly black. Stem 3–8 cm tall, smooth to partly fluted and somewhat paler than the head.
Identification checklist
Check the nearly black saddle-shaped head and dark relatively smooth stem without pronounced deep pits.
Detailed features
- Cap
- Cap 1.5–4 cm wide, saddle-shaped with two upward-pointing lobes, grey- to black-brown or nearly black.
- Stem
- Stem 3–8 cm tall, smooth to partly fluted and somewhat paler than the head.
Size
- Cap diameter
- 1,5–4 cm
- Stem height
- 3–8 cm
Habitat
Grows on sandy soils beside roads, in gardens, parks and mixed woodland in summer and autumn; not common.
Fruiting period
June, July, August, September, October
Ecology
- Substrate
- Sandy soil
- Notes
- Grows on sandy soils beside roads, in gardens, parks and mixed woodland in summer and autumn; not common.
How to separate similar species
Helvella lacunosa has a distinctly deeply fluted, paler stem. Dark saddle fungi can look similar, so atypical specimens need further identification.