Conocybe dunensis Dune Conecap

Conocybe dunensis, Dune Conecap, is a brown mushroom that grows with Marram Grass (Ammonphila arenaria) in the open, mobile sand areas in coastal dunes. It is one of a number of species that is specifically associated with this habitat and, as such, it is part of the sand dune species assemblage that is now regarded to be of significant importance to national biodiversity and conservation. The chestnut brown cap, which fades to a lighter date-brown colour on drying, is somewhat dome-shaped in young specimens. It can be confused with some other similar species but microscopic examination of a gill squash will reveal the characteristic flask-shaped cheilocystidia which have a small bulbous head and the large, thick-walled, brown spores which have a prominent germ pore. Conocybe dunensis is probably present in all of West Glamorgan's dunes but it is rarely recorded.