| Tricholoma pardinum | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Basidiomycota |
| Class: | Agaricomycetes |
| Order: | Agaricales |
| Suborder: | Tricholomatineae |
| Family: | Tricholomataceae |
| Genus: | Tricholoma |
| Species: | T. pardinum
|
| Binomial name | |
| Tricholoma pardinum | |
| |
| T. pardinum range | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
|
Agaricus myomyces var. pardinus Pers. (1801) | |
Tricholoma pardinum | |
|---|---|
 | Gills on hymenium |
 | Cap is convex |
 | Hymenium is free |
 | Stipe is bare |
 | Spore print is white |
 | Ecology is mycorrhizal |
 | Edibility is poisonous |
Tricholoma pardinum, commonly known as spotted tricholoma, tiger tricholoma, tigertop, leopard knight, or dirty trich, is a gilled mushroom widely distributed across North America, Europe, and parts of Asia. It is generally found in beech woodland in summer and autumn. Two subspecies have been described from southern Europe. First officially described by Christiaan Hendrik Persoon in 1801, T. pardinum has had a confusing taxonomic history that extends over two centuries. In 1762, German naturalist Jacob Christian Schäffer described the species Agaricus tigrinus with an illustration corresponding to what is thought to be T. pardinum, and consequently, the name Tricholoma tigrinum has been used erroneously in some European field guides.
The fruit body of Tricholoma pardinum is an imposing mushroom with a pale grey cap up to 15 cm (6 in) in diameter that is covered with dark brownish to greyish scales. The gills are whitish, and are not attached to the stout white to pale grey-brown stalk. The spore print is white. One of the more toxic members of the genus Tricholoma, the species has been implicated in a number of episodes of mushroom poisoning, probably because it is a large, attractive mushroom with a pleasant smell and taste, and it bears a superficial resemblance to several edible species, like Tricholoma terreum. Ingesting T. pardinum—even in small quantities—results in a severe, persistent gastroenteritis caused by an unknown mycotoxin.