Stropharia ambigua

9.9

A mushroom with gills, a long stalk, and a slimy yellow cap whose gills turn white to dark brown

noun

Specialized

: Stropharia ambigua

The gills of Stropharia ambigua transition from white to dark brown as the spores mature and are released.

Examples

The bright yellow, sticky cap of the Stropharia ambigua makes it easy to distinguish from other mushrooms in the forest.
When foraging in damp woods, she spotted a cluster of Stropharia ambigua growing among the fallen leaves.
The Stropharia ambigua is often found in damp forest areas.
Have you ever seen a Stropharia ambigua in the wild?
The bright yellow, sticky cap of the Stropharia ambigua makes it easy to distinguish from other mushrooms in the forest.
The gills of Stropharia ambigua transition from white to dark brown as the spores mature and are released.
When foraging in damp woods, she spotted a cluster of Stropharia ambigua growing among the fallen leaves.

Surface Forms

Stropharia ambigua singular

Stropharia ambiguas plural

Morphology

Stropharia + ambigua

This item is a Latin binomial (genus + species) functioning as a taxonomic label rather than a compositional English phrase, so its referential meaning (a particular gilled mushroom) is not built from everyday English word meanings. A B1 learner who knows the listed constituents (a technical genus name and an unknown epithet) would not be able to derive the descriptive species characteristics, making the expression non-compositional and unpredictable.

Etymology

Stropharia ambigua may come from old Greek and Latin words: Stropharia may mean 'turn' and ambigua means 'uncertain' or 'changing'. That's a helpful image because this mushroom has a slimy yellow cap and gills that 'turn' from white to dark as it grows, so its appearance seems to change.