Ileodictyon cibarium

[1] Although the immature spherical fruitbodies are reportedly edible, the mature fruit body is foul-smelling and partly covered with a slime layer containing spores (gleba) on the inner surfaces.Several of the names refer to whaitiri, the atua and personification of thunder, this is because of the frequent appearance of I. cibarium fruit bodies following thunderstorms.[5][6] In a 2018 poll, I. cibarium was ranked second by Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research for its pick as New Zealand's national fungus, being defeated by Entoloma hochstetteri.[13][11] Ileodictyon cibarium is native to New Zealand and Australia and has also been found in Chile and Brazil as well as in Africa, probably as a result of it being introduced.[15] It grows alone or clustered together near woody debris, in lawns, gardens, and cultivated soil, along roads, in forest.
Cross section of the unopened fruiting body of the basket fungus ( Ileodictyon cibarium ), with a ballpoint pen for scale
Scientific classificationEukaryotaBasidiomycotaAgaricomycetesPhallalesPhallaceaeIleodictyonBinomial nameMycological characteristicsGlebalhymeniumSpore printsaprotrophicfungusfamilyAustraliaNew Zealandfruit bodiespolyhedrafullerenesslime layersporesEdmond TulasneCharles TulasneÉtienne RaoulMāori languagewhaitiriManaaki Whenua – Landcare ResearchEntoloma hochstetteriIleodictyon gracileedibleWikidataMycotaxonCritter of the WeekWikispeciesAusFungiiNaturalistIndexFungorumMycoBankNatureServeOpen Tree of LifeSpeciesFungorum