This species was described by Kuhner in the 1930’s, but was described again in 1964 by Smith and Singer as Galerina heterocystis. In the 1970’s Kuhner agreed that the species should get called G. heterocystis, I’m not sure why, but there it stayed until the late 1990’s.

Both these species were described with having both 2-spored and 4-spored basidia. In the late 1990’s, early 2000’s further studies of Galerina looked at this species, and decided that the 2-spored and 4-spored versions should be split into two different species. Looking over the samples in herbariums, it turns out that the 4-spored version matched the description and samples for G. clavata on hand, and not the type sample for G. heterocystis. I also turned out that the 2-spored version didn’t match either of these, and it has gone into G. subclavata.

So, question is, what is G. heterocystis if it doesn’t match what people have seen over the years? Not sure, but the type sample seems to be something else, and the accepted description of the taxon that people have used matches the type sample for G. clavata instead, so here we are.

The is from personal conversations with Prod. Gro Gulden of Univ. of Oslo, and I’ll get a better source at some point here.

Cap 0.5-2.5 cm in diameter, 0.5-1.5 cm high, conical to hemispherical, light tan to yellow-tan, striate, hygrophanous. Gills adnexed, thin, concolorous to cap, light brown in age with spores, Stipe 2-5 cm high, 1-3mm wide, colorless to concolorous to cap, even to widening at the base, covered in thin white hyphae, veil present only when very young, quickly disappearing leaving no remnants.

Spores 11-13 × 5-7um, ellipsoid, punctate, no plage, non-dextrinoid. 4-spored basidia, Cheilocystidia tibiiform, no pleurocystidia present. Caulocystidia tibiiform. No pileocystidia present.