Calvatia gigantea, commonly known in English as the giant puffball, is a puffball mushroom found in meadows, fields, and deciduous forests in late summer and autumn. It is found in temperate areas throughout the world. It is edible when young.

Taxonomy

The classification of this species has been revised in recent decades. Puffballs, earthballs, earthstars, stinkhorns and several other kinds of fungi were once thought to be related and were known as the gasteromycetes or 'stomach' fungi, because the fertile material develops inside spherical or pear-shaped fruitbodies; however, this group is now known to be polyphyletic.

Today, some authors place the giant puffball and other members of genus Calvatia in order Agaricales. The giant puffball has also been placed in two other genera, Lycoperdon and Langermannia, in years past. The current view is that the giant puffball belongs in Calvatia.

Description

Calvatia gigantea grows up to wide and high. It can grow to 80 cm diameter and weigh several kilograms.

The interior of an immature puffball is white, while that of a mature specimen is greenish brown. The fruiting body of a puffball mushroom develops within a few weeks and soon begins to decompose and rot, at which point it becomes dangerous to eat. Unlike most mushrooms, all the spores of the giant puffball are created inside the fruiting body; large specimens can easily contain several trillion. The spores are yellowish, smooth, and 3–6 μm in size. on its way to making seven quintillion (7,000,000,000,000,000,000) spores.

Similar species

Identification techniques make it relatively easy to distinguish from others of its genus.

Conservation

It is widespread and common in the United Kingdom Some people experience a laxative effect from eating this species. Authors Hui-Yeng Y. Yap, Mohammad Farhan Ariffeen Rosli, et al. found evidence to suggest that C. gigantea was "traditionally used by American Indians, Nigerian and German folks" for this purpose. The authors, however, did not specify the preferred form of wound dressing (e.g., powdered or sliced).

In addition to consuming the mushroom, the Māori people of New Zealand used it to stem bleeding and treat burns.

References

Further reading

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  • Video footage of mature Giant Puffballs
  • The Giant Puffball
  • VOLATILES OF THE GIANT PUFFBALL MUSHROOM (Calvatia gigantea)