Species details

Vinegar cup

Helvella acetabulum

Conditional / expert preparation

Description

A spring grey-brown cup-shaped saddle fungus with a whitish stem and strong ribs extending up the outside of the cup.

Identification features

Fruitbody about 4–8 cm wide, initially dome-shaped and later cup-shaped, grey-brown to smoky. The short whitish stem is strongly ribbed; vein-like ribs branch upward over the outside of the cup.

Identification checklist

Check the cup shape and especially the short whitish stem with strong ribs that fork upward over the outside of the cup.

Detailed features

Stem: The short whitish stem is strongly ribbed; vein-like ribs branch upward over the outside of the cup.

Habitat

Grows in spring in deciduous and mixed woodland beneath trees and shrubs, especially oak, hornbeam and hazel.

Fruiting period

March, April, May

Ecology

Host trees: Oak (Quercus), Hornbeam (Carpinus), Hazel (Corylus)
Notes: Grows in spring in deciduous and mixed woodland beneath trees and shrubs, especially oak, hornbeam and hazel.

How to separate similar species

Discina ancilis is more sessile and grows from wood. Related cup-shaped saddle fungi can look very similar; unclear specimens require caution.

Similar species

Extended-description sources

Helvella acetabulum – gobe.si