biology

Psilocybe plutonia

Psilocybe plutonia is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Psilocybe plutonia rather than just read about it. In short: Psilocybe plutonia is a small psilocybin mushroom of the family Hymenogastraceae, believed to contain psilocybin and psilocin. It was first documented from Cuba.

Key takeaways

Psilocybe plutonia belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Psilocybe plutonia to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Psilocybe plutonia from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Psilocybe plutonia is a small psilocybin mushroom of the family Hymenogastraceae, believed to contain psilocybin and psilocin. It was first documented from Cuba. An older synonym is Agaricus plutonia. It is in the section Cordisporae.

Etymology The word plutonia comes from the Latin words plutonian or plutonic. Perhaps in connection with the dark color of the mushroom.

Description Pileus: 0.5–1.5 cm in diameter, conic to convex, with an acute umbo or papilla, not viscid, glabrous, slightly translucent-striate, silky white fibrils when young that fade in age, hygrophanous, lubricous, reddish brown to yellowish brown or clay color, becoming blackish. Flesh thin, brownish. Gills: Adnexed, sometimes with a decurrent tooth, thin, light brown to dark brown, blackish in age, edges pallid. Spores: Purple brown in deposit, rhomboid or subrhomboid in face view, (3.7)4.5–6(6.7) x 4.5–5.2 μm, thick-walled, with a broad truncate germ pore. Stipe: (1.8)2.5–4(5) cm long, 0.5–1.5 mm equal to slightly enlarged at the base, flexuous, hollow, dark brown or reddish brown, apex pruinose, zoned with appressed whitish fibrils. No annulus is formed by the cortinate veil. Taste: Unknown. Odor: None to slightly farinaceous. Microscopic features: Basidia 11–17 μm, pleurocystidia 17–26 μm, cheilocystidia 12–17 x 5–6 μm.

Distribution and habitat Psilocybe plutonia may be found growing solitary or gregarious, from late June through February, on rotted wood or in soil with woody material, in tropical forests, from Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela and Cuba, often near sea level or in lower elevations, although widely distributed, it is not found often.

References B. & C, FUNGI CUB. 77. 1867 Berk. & Curt. Jour. Linn. Soc. 10: 292. 1868 (Berk. & Curt.) Sacc. Syll. Fung. 5: 1056. 1887 Guzmán, G. The Genus Psilocybe: A Systematic Revision of the Known Species Including the History, Distribution and Chemistry of the Hallucinogenic Species. The Hallucinogenic Species of Psilocybe (Fr.) P. Kumm. (Agaricomycetidae) in Colombia, Their Indian Use, New Records, and New Species

Further reading Stamets, Paul (1996). Psilocybin Mushrooms of the World. Berkeley: Ten Speed Press. ISBN 0-9610798-0-0. Guzmán, G. The Genus Psilocybe: A Systematic Revision of the Known Species Including the History, Distribution and Chemistry of the Hallucinogenic Species. Beihefte zur Nova Hedwigia Heft 74. J. Cramer, Vaduz, Germany (1983) [now out of print].

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Psilocybe plutonia

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Psilocybe plutonia claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Psilocybe plutonia before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Psilocybe plutonia ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Psilocybe plutonia

In research: Psilocybe plutonia appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Psilocybe plutonia in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Psilocybe plutonia is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Entheogens, Fungi of North America, Fungus species, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Psilocybe plutonia outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “Psilocybe plutonia” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Psilocybe plutonia in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Psilocybe plutonia means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Psilocybe plutonia out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Psilocybe plutonia in simple terms?

Psilocybe plutonia is a small psilocybin mushroom of the family Hymenogastraceae, believed to contain psilocybin and psilocin. It was first documented from Cuba.

Why does Psilocybe plutonia matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Psilocybe plutonia?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Psilocybe plutonia.