Dead Man's Foot: Pisolithus tinctorius

Sporocarp
Sporocarp 5-20 cm tall, 4-10 cm wide, rounded to lobed, becoming club-shaped, with a sterile, yellowish-brown, fibrous, deeply rooted base; peridium thin, smooth, often shiny, yellowish-brown, dark-brown to purple brown; gleba, of tiny, pebble-sized, white to yellowish-brown, sometimes reddish-brown peridioles (spore sacs) developing in a black gelatinous matrix; at maturity the peridium crumbling apically revealing a mass of cinnamon-brown spores; odor pleasant, of mushrooms.

Spores
Spores cinnamon brown, 7-12 µm, globose, spiny.

Habitat
Solitary to scattered near conifers and hardwoods, in our area typically Monterey pine and live oak; typically in impoverished soils, or disturbed ground, e.g. roadsides, paths, and dry grassy areas; fruiting in the early fall.

Edibility
Said to be edible when young, but with local experience lacking, not recommended.

Comments
This puffball is inevitably described as one of the least attractive of all fungi. However, it can be interesting to section immature sporocarps to view the distinctive sac-like peridioles. At maturity, the peridioles breakdown to form the masses of spores which make this fungus unpleasant to collect. While ignored by most amateur collectors, it's worth noting that it finds use in Forestry because of its ability to form mycorrhizae with a variety of conifer seedlings, and by artists, who use it as a source for dyes.