[GS] Pileus 2-5 cm. diam., vinaceous, convex with down-rolled margin exceeding the gills, becoming plane, dry, covered with small fibrillose scales; flesh creamy or white. Gills sinuate, moderately crowded, creamy white. Stipe 2-6 cm. x 3-6 mm., vinaceous, striate above indistinct ring, floccose scaly below, fibrous, equal, solid or somewhat hollow at base, flesh white or pale vinaceous continuous with that of cap. Spores 6-7 x 4-5um, faintly amyloid, moderately thick-walled, finely spinulose; print white. Cystidia sparsely scattered on gill faces (Fig. 1/14, p . 10). Cuticle of loosely woven hyphae mostly narrow and collapsed, but some up to 5um diam., clamp connections conspicuous. HABITAT: on fallen wood in mixed forest, Levin, 18.6.1949, Stevenson; & Waikanae, 1.1.1951, Stevenson (type). [EH] Spores oval, hyaline, weakly amyloid, minutely warted, no distinct plage, 5-6 x 3-3.5um. Cheilocystidia none. Pleurocystidia fusoid, apically encrusted with crystals, 30-40 x 4-6 um. Cuticle of irregularly arranged short-celled hyphae, thin-walled, covered with brown epimembranous pigment. All hyphae bear clamp connections. [JAC] most certainly a Melanoleuca but with a cap structure reminiscent of Echinoderma or Cystoderma/Cystodermella. The spores are only weakly amyloid, but definitely so. The packet contains just a few fragments of cap, and unlike other Kew Stevenson collections there is just one packet and not two. There is more material somewhere, including the stipe. This must be considered rare. It is highly distinctive.

[Notes from Kew Type specimen, PRJ 2010] Kew have another Stevenson collection GS 671

Pileus 2-5 µm diam., vinaceous, convex with down-rolled margin exceeding the gills, becoming plane, dry, covered with small fibrillose scales; flesh creamy or white. Gills sinuate, moderately crowded, creamy white. Stipe 2-6 cm x 3-6 mm, vinaceous, striate above indistinct ring, floccose scaly below, fibrous, equal, solid or somewhat hollow at base, flesh white or pale vinaceous continuous with that of cap. Spores 6-7 x 4-5 µm, faintly amyloid, moderately thick-walled, finely spinulose; print white. Cystidia sparsely scattered on gill faces (Fig. 14). Cuticle of loosely woven hyphae mostly narrow and collapsed, but some up to 5 µm diam., clamp connections conspicuous.

On fallen wood in mixed forest, Levin, 18.6.1349, Stevenson; & Waikanae, 1.1.1951, Stevenson (type).

Pileus 2-5 cm diam., vinaceus, convexus, margine deflexo-revoluto lamellas excedente, deinde planus, siccus, squamulis parvis fibrillosis obtectus; carne cremea vel alba. Lamellae sinuosae, modice confertae, cremeo-albae. Stipes 2-6 cm x 3-6 mm, vinaceus, supra annulum indistinctum striatus, inferne floccoso-squamosus, fibrosus, aequalis, basi solidus vel subcavus; carne alba vel pallide vinacea cum pileo continua. Sporae 6-7 x 4-5 µm levissime amyloideae, parietibus modice crassis, tenuiter spinulosae; in cumulo albae. Cystidia per superficiem lamellarum parce sparsa. Cuticula ex hyphis laxe intertextis plerumque angustis et collapsis sed interdum usque 5 µm diam, sistens, fibulis conspicuis.

Typus: Stevenson 795