Where’s Wildlife · Mushroom Field Guide
Phallus ravenelii
Pronounced (approx.): FAL-us rav-en-ELL-ee-eye
A white-stemmed stinkhorn with a distinct, slime-covered cap. These photographs were taken in Illinois.
Ravenel’s Stinkhorn. Select the photo to browse the gallery. Photographs © Where’s Wildlife.
NATIVE
Fruiting varies with local weather and habitat.
White, spongy stalk
Separate cap with a relatively smooth or finely granular surface
Opening at the top of the cap
Compare views, cap surfaces and stalk shapes in the photographs below.
Identified as Phallus ravenelii from the white stalk and relatively smooth to finely granular cap surface. Examine the cap beneath the slime when comparing similar species.
Phallus impudicus has a deeply pitted and ridged cap beneath the slime. Mutinus stinkhorns lack a separate cap: their slime forms directly on the upper stalk.
Woodlands, garden beds and decaying woody material. Often fruits in late summer and fall.
The fruiting body emerges from an egg-like structure. Its strong-smelling spore slime attracts insects that carry spores away.
The stalk expands from a rounded immature structure.
Insects help move the spores.
The surface beneath the slime helps separate similar stinkhorns.
Found across eastern North America and the Midwest. These photographs were taken in Illinois.
Explore reported sightings on iNaturalist. Observation records are not a complete range map.
Photographs © Where’s Wildlife.
Identification notes & comments
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