Synonyme: Phallus crispus;
Gyromitra esculenta.
English: White saddle; Elfin saddle; Common helvel.
German: Herbst-Lorchel; Krause Lorchel.
Name: crispa is Latin for wrinkled or curly.
Region: China, Japan, Europe and eastern North America.
Habitat: grass as well as in humid hardwoods, such as beech, along the side of pathways, in hedges and on the talus of meadows.
Content: monomethylhydrazine, cause severe sporadic intoxications, may be carcinogenic. It has been reported to cause gastrointestinal symptoms when eaten raw.
Use: edible, regarded with suspicion by many; not edible raw.
MycologyIdentification: irregularly shaped whitish cap, fluted stem, fussy undersurfaces.
Smell: pleasant aroma
Fungus: creamy white; ± 10 cm long, ± 5 cm in diameter; flesh is thin and brittle.
Stem: ± 5 cm long; white or pinkish in colour; ornately ribbed.
Spore print: white.
Spores: oval.