Psilocybe s. str. (Agaricales, Strophariaceae) in Africa with description of a new species from the Congo

Guzmán G., Nixon S. C., Ramírez-Guillén F. & Cortés-Pérez A. (2014) Psilocybe s. str. (Agaricales, Strophariaceae) in Africa with description of a new species from the Congo.

Sydowia 66 (1): 43–53

Eight species of Psilocybe s. l. which have been reported from Africa are discussed. Psilocybe aquamarina, P. cubensis, P. cyanescens, P. goniospora, P. mairei, P. natalensis, P. semilanceata and P. subcubensis are considered, of which P. cyanescens, P. goniospora and P. semilanceata were reported in doubtful way. A new species, Psilocybe congolensis is described, which is the first hallucinogenic mushroom known from the Democratic Republic of Congo. For the first time we established a connection between P. subcubensis described from Mexico and P. aquamarina from Africa. Traditional use in the past of the Psilocybe cubensis-complex in Africa is discussed.

Keywords: Hallucinogenic agarics, Hymenogastraceae, ethnomycology, taxonomy.

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