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''Psilocybe aztecorum'' is a species of psilocybin mushroom in the family Strophariaceae. Known only from central Mexico, the fungus grows on decomposing woody debris and is found in mountainous areas at elevations of , typically in meadows or open, grassy forests associated with Hartweg's pine (''Pinus hartwegii''). The mushrooms have convex to bell-shaped caps in diameter, atop slender cylindrical stems that are up to long. The color of the caps changes with variations in hydration, ranging from dark chestnut brown to straw yellow or whitish when dry. The base of the stem is densely covered with conspicuous white rhizomorphs, a characteristic uncommon amongst ''Psilocybe'' species. The species was first reported by French mycologist Roger Heim in 1956 as a variety of ''Psilocybe mexicana'' before he officially described it under its current name a year later. Named for its association with the Nahua people also called Aztecs, ''P. aztecorum'' may have been one of the sacred mushroom species, or ''teonanácatl'' (A Nahuatl word translated variously as "sacred mushroom" or "flesh of the gods"), reported in the codices of 16th-century Spanish chronicler Bernardino de Sahagún. The mushrooms are still used for spiritual ceremonies by Nahua Indians in the Popocatépetl region, although this traditional usage is waning. The variety ''P. aztecorum'' var. ''bonetii'' has smaller spores than the main variety, and is found at lower elevations with Montezuma pine (''Pinus montezumae'') and sacred fir (''Abies religiosa''). ''P. aztecorum'' may be distinguished from similar temperate species such as ''P. baeocystis'' and ''P. quebecensis'' by their ranges, and by differences in the morphology of microscopic structures like cystidia. ==Taxonomy and nomenclature== The species was first mentioned by French mycologist Roger Heim in 1956 based on material collected by American ethnomycologist R. Gordon Wasson in Paso de Cortés, on the slopes of Popocatépetl mountain in Mexico. Heim originally named the species as a variety of ''Psilocybe mexicana''; limited to dried mushroom material for analysis, he only described the spores, which he explained were "relatively longer and narrower than that of ''Psilocybe mexicana''".〔 A year later, Heim renamed the fungus ''Psilocybe aztecorum'' and officially described it, in addition to several other Mexican ''Psilocybe'' taxa.〔 Some of these mushrooms, including ''P. aztecorum'', were illustrated in the popular American weekly magazine ''Life'' ("Seeking the Magic Mushroom"), in which Wasson recounted the psychedelic visions that he experienced during the divinatory rituals of the Mazatec people, thereby introducing psilocybin mushrooms to Western popular culture.〔 In 1978, Mexican mycologist and ''Psilocybe'' specialist Gastón Guzmán emended the description of ''P. aztecorum'' to include the color variation of the cap resulting from its strongly hygrophanous nature, the mycenoid form, the rhizoids at the base of the stem, the lignicolous habitat, and the size of the spores—all features that he thought were either confused, or not sufficiently detailed, in Heim's original description.〔 In the same publication, Guzmán also characterized the variety ''P. aztecorum'' var. ''bonetii'', distinguished from the main variety by its smaller spores.〔 He had originally described this variant as a separate species, ''Psilocybe bonetii'', in 1970.〔 Further, Guzmán later published ''Psilocybe natarajanii'', originally described by him from Tamil Nadu in southern India,〔 as a synonym of ''P. aztecorum'' var. ''bonetii'';〔 this putative synonymy, however, is confirmed by neither MycoBank nor Index Fungorum.〔〔 Guzmán called the main variety ''P. aztecorum'' var. ''aztecorum''; for this reason, the species authority is often cited as "''P. aztecorum'' var. ''aztecorum'' R. Heim emend. Guzmán".〔Stamets (1996), (pp. 92–3. )〕〔 ''Psilocybe aztecorum'' is the type species of Guzmán's section ''Aztecorum'', a group of bluing (i.e., psilocybin-containing) ''Psilocybe'' mushrooms characterized by having a strongly hygrophanous cap that dries to brown or brownish white when dry; spores that appear asymmetrical when seen in side view; and pleurocystidia that, when present, are hyaline (translucent). Other species classified in section ''Aztecorum'' are ''P. baeocystis'' and ''P. quebecensis''.〔 The specific epithet ''aztecorum'' refers to the Aztec Indians of central Mexico, who used this mushroom in traditional ceremonies long before the Spanish came to America. The variety ''P. aztecorum'' var. ''bonneti'' is named after Dr. Federico Bonet (died 1980), emeritus professor of the Escuela Nacional de Ciencias Biológicas, who assisted Guzmán with his doctoral studies.〔 The popular names of ''P. aztecorum'' are ''niños'' or ''niñitos'' (children or little children), or in the Nahuatl language ''apipiltzin''〔 which means ''niños del agua'' ("children of the water"), alluding to their habitat along ravines.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Psilocybe aztecorum」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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