Atheniella adonis
Index Fungorum 14: 1. 2012.
Synonym: Mycena adonis (Bull.) Gray
For description see Smith 1947
Scattered to gregarious on bark, leaf, and needle debris and on the twigs of both hardwoods and conifers; fall and winter in North and Central Coast Ranges and the northern Sierra Nevada.
Way too small to be considered for the table.
Atheniella adonis could be confused with other brightly colored mycenoid fungi: Mycena acicula, Mycena aurantiidisca, Mycena oregonensis, and Mycena strobilinoides. Mycena acicula typically is a smaller mushroom with a deep orange red cap rather than the typical bright salmon pink of Atheniella adonis. Since the colors and sizes of Mycena acicula and Atheniella adonis are close, the microscope is the best way to distinguish them, with spore size and shape being differnt. Mycena aurantiidisca can be distinguished from Atheniella adonis by it lack of scarlet to pinkish tones in the cap and lack of gelatinized cortical hyphae. Mycena oregonensis is distinguished from Atheniella adonis by its orange to yellow cap and lack of scarlet to pinkish tones. Mycena strobilinoides can be distinguished from Atheniella adonis by its orange cap and amyloid spores.
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