During another walk this evening I encountered another mushroom that had a similar appearance to an edible field mushroom. I picked it and brought it back to the house to document why it is not an edible field mushroom. Here is a picture of the cap.
The cap is not outside of the colour range that one might expect for an edible field mushroom, but notice that it is shiny? In fact it is quite slimy to the touch. This alone is enough to declare it to not be an edible Agaricus. However, let us continue…
When we flip the mushroom over, we can see that the gills are in the right kind of colour range and that the stem has the right sort of thickness in relation to the cap. In fact, the gills even darken from pinkish to brown over time. However, the thing that is glaringly absent is an annulus or ring on the stem. Not a hint of one! We know for sure now that this is not an edible Agaricus, but lets go further…
If we attempt to snap the stem away from the cap, the result is unsucessful. The whole cap tears apart rather than breaking at the junction of the stem and the cap. There is no change in the tissue type between the stem and the cap. This thing has now failed three tests. Quite a pretty mushroom never the less 
If you are wondering about the tabletop, it is Australian red cedar, Toona ciliata. The mushrroom is Hebeloma westraliense, edibility unknown (Bougher and Syme). Hebelomas are very useful for promoting the growth of Eucalypts and are cultivated for that purpose worldwide.
Julie said,
May 13, 2010 @ 2:13 pm
Hey, these hints and instruction are really good. Clear, concise and with pics. Very handy for the novice. Everything you always wanted and needed to know. Thankyou. Keep it coming Morrie.
morrie2 said,
May 14, 2010 @ 2:24 am
Thanks for the encouragement! I’ll do my best.
Dave Freer said,
May 15, 2010 @ 2:32 am
Morrie2 – what sort of environment was it in please?
morrie2 said,
May 16, 2010 @ 6:03 am
Hi Dave,
That Hebeloma was along the edge of some karri / marri forest, right next to some introduced Stringybark trees. Impossible to know what the host tree is.
Maxine kerr said,
September 1, 2010 @ 10:40 am
Found these in my garden
theyre beautiful <3
Quinticus said,
October 11, 2010 @ 12:52 am
So which species of Hebeloma is it? Hebelomas are so mysterious. Even on the internet it’s hard to find out much about them. Is this one poisonous? If so, how poisonous is it? Just think, if the actress Kate Hudson had a sister named Hebeloma, it could be Hebeloma Hudson. How’s that for alliteration? Those heavenly Hebelomas. So mysterious.
morrie2 said,
October 13, 2010 @ 10:50 am
I have identified it as Hebeloma westraliense, as I mentioned. I might be wrong, but it matches up with the description in my reference book – Bougher and Syme. Fungi of Southern Australia. They list the edibility as unknown, which is the general case for Australian fungi. David Arora says Hebelomas should not be eaten – thats good enough for me. They might give you the Hebe-jeebies!