About Coprinopsis stercorea (Fr.) Redhead, Vilgalys & Moncalvo
Coprinopsis stercorea has a cap 4 to 10 millimeters in diameter. It starts as egg-shaped, then expands and becomes flat as it ages. The cap surface can be hairy or scaly. The stipe measures 1 to 3.5 centimeters long and 0.5 to 1 millimeter wide, and its surface can be hairy or powdery. The gills are adnexed. They start out grayish, then turn black and deliquesce. This species is similar to several other inky cap species; many of these can only be distinguished from Coprinopsis stercorea under a microscope. Coprinus ephemeroides resembles Coprinopsis stercorea, but C. ephemeroides has a ring around its stipe. This fungus grows on dung. It most commonly occurs on herbivore dung, and is occasionally found growing on dog dung and bear dung.
