Clustered Domecap vs Long-eared Hedgehog

Lyophyllum decastes compared with Hemiechinus auritus

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Clustered Domecap	Long-eared Hedgehog
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Basidiomycota (Club Fungi)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Agaricomycetes (Mushrooms)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Agaricales (Gilled Mushrooms)	Erinaceomorpha (Erinaceomorpha)
Family	Lyophyllaceae	Erinaceidae
Genus	Lyophyllum	Hemiechinus
Species	Lyophyllum decastes	Hemiechinus auritus

Conservation Status

Clustered Domecap

LC — Least Concern

Long-eared Hedgehog

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Clustered Domecap	Long-eared Hedgehog
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Clustered Domecap

Habitat

Typically found in forest floors, decomposing wood, and soil ecosystems.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (5 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Brazil, Chile).

Long-eared Hedgehog

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

Distributed across Cyprus, Spain, and Ukraine.

Clustered Domecap

Lyophyllum decastes, the clustered domecap or fried chicken mushroom, is a robust saprotrophic or possibly mycorrhizal basidiomycete in the family Lyophyllaceae that produces large, densely clustered fruiting bodies at the base of dead hardwoods, stumps, or from buried wood and woody debris. The caps are grey-brown to tan, broadly convex to domed, often with wavy margins in crowded clusters. Gills are white to pallid, crowded, and sinuate. It is distributed across the northern hemisphere in broadleaf and mixed forests. L. decastes is edible and considered a choice food mushroom in parts of Europe and Japan, where its firm texture and mild flavor have earned it the English nickname 'fried chicken mushroom.' However, definitive identification requires care, as it can be confused with toxic lookalikes. Molecular studies have revealed that the concept of L. decastes may encompass multiple species or a species complex. The species is classified as Least Concern by the IUCN and is commonly encountered in autumn in temperate woodlands, parks, and roadsides across its wide range.