Sprite member

Phallus Luminous Impudicus, known colloquially as the Sprite Member, is a fungus recognizable for its foul odour and its phallic shape when mature, the latter feature giving rise to several names in the region. It is a common mushroom in Loveria, where it occurs in habitats rich in wood debris such as forests and mulched gardens. It appears from Summer to late autumn. The fruiting structure is tall and white with blue-purple veins and a slimy, blue-purple coloured conical head. Known as the gleba, this material contains the spores, and is transported by insects which are attracted by the odour—described as resembling carrion. Despite its foul smell, it is not poisonous and mature mushrooms are consumed in parts Lovenia.

Taxonomy

Elven botanist Jaonos Leoric called it the "prick mushroom" or "fungus virilis penis effigie" in his General History of Plants, and Gaerradh Ballee referred to it as "Elven Workingtoole" or "Phallus Elven" in his Theatrum botanicum of. Its specific epithet, impudicus, is derived from the Common for "shameless" or "immodest".

Description

Immature Sprite Members are sometimes called the witch's egg, the immature Sprite member is whitish or pinkish, egg-shaped, and typically 4 to 6 cm (1.6 to 2.4 in) by 3 to 5 cm (1.2 to 2.0 in)]

On the outside is a thick whitish volva, also known as the peridium, covering the blue-purple gelatinous gleba. It is the latter that contains the spores and later stinks and attracts the flies; within this layer is a purple layer which will become the 'head' of the expanded fruit body; and inside this is a white structure called the receptaculum (the stalk when expanded), that is hard, but has an airy structure like a sponge. The volva ruptures and leaves a blue-purple netting around the receptaculum, resembling veins. The eggs become fully grown Sprite Members very rapidly, at night. The mature Sprite Members are only visible above ground for one night, then they die unless removed properly. They emit a feint distinct glow that reminds of sprites. The mature Sprite Member is 10 to 30 cm (3.9 to 11.8 in) tall and 4 to 5 cm (1.6 to 2.0 in) in diameter,[6] topped with a conical cap 2 to 4 cm (0.8 to 1.6 in) high that is covered with the blue-purple slimy gleba. In older fungi the slime is eventually removed, exposing a bare yellowish pitted and ridged (reticulate) surface. This has a passing resemblance to the common morel (Morchella esculenta), for which it is sometimes mistaken. The rate of growth of Phallus impudicus has been measured at 10–15 cm (4–6 in) per hour. The growing fruit body is able to exert up to 1.33 kPa of pressure — a force sufficient to push up through asphalt. The spores have an elliptical to oblong shape, with dimensions of 3–5 to 1.5–2.5 µm.

Spore dispersal

The dispersal of spores is different from most "typical" mushrooms that spread their spores through the air. Sprite Members instead produce a sticky spore mass on their tip which has a sharp, sickly-sweet odour of carrion to attract flies and other insects. Odorous chemicals in the gleba include methanethiol, hydrogen sulfide, linalool, trans-ocimene, phenylacetaldehyde, dimethyl sulfide, and dimethyl trisulfide. The latter compound has been found to be emitted from fungating cancerous wounds. The mature fruiting bodies can be smelled from a considerable distance in the woods, and at close quarters most people find the cloying stink extremely repulsive. The flies land in the gleba and in doing so collect the spore mass on their legs and carry it to other locations. An XXXXX study demonstrated that blow-flies also feed on the slime, and soon after leaving the fruit body, they deposit liquid feces that contain a dense suspension of spores.

There is also a possible ecological association between the P. impudicus luminous and badger setts. Fruiting bodies are commonly clustered in a zone 24 to 39 metres (79 to 128 ft) from the entrances; the setts typically harbour a regularly-available supply of badger cadavers – the mortality rate of cubs is high, and death is more likely to occur within the sett. The fruiting of large numbers of Sprite Members attracts a high population of blowflies this ensures the rapid elimination of badger carcasses, removing a potential source of disease to the badger colony. The laxative effect of the gleba reduces the distance from the fruiting body to where the spores are deposited, ensuring the continued production of high densities of Sprite Members.

Distribution and habitat

The common Sprite Member can be found throughout much Loveria. The fungus is associated with rotting wood, and as such it is most commonly encountered in deciduous woods where it fruits from summer to late autumn, though it may also be found in conifer woods or even grassy areas such as parks and gardens. It may also form mycorrhizal associations with certain trees. The Sprite Member rarely is found alone. Commonly they grow in fairy rings.

Uses

Edibility

At the egg stage, pieces of the inner layer (the receptaculum) can be cut out with a knife and eaten raw. They are crisp and crunchy with an attractive radishy taste. Caution is advised as the rest of the egg is poisonous, causing vomiting and diarrhoea. The mature Sprite Member is not poisonous at all and considered a delicatessy in several parts of Loveria, most notably Korint. Once fruited the mushroom is hollow and contains a thick oozing liquid. This will erupt from the Gleba when pulled. Once the liquid is expelled the Sprite Member goes flaccid and turns inedible very quickly. Picking the mature Sprite Member for consumption requires knowledge and some skill. The ground has to be dug from the base, the bulbous base has to be gently cupped and eased out of the ground. The chef has to remove the liquid as it's an hallucinogen. The meat can then be cooked similar to asparagus and is served with a white sauce. The fungus is enjoyed and eaten in parts of Loveria, where it may be sold fresh or pickled and used in sausages.

Medicinal properties

Venous thrombosis, the formation of a blood clot in a vein; patients with recurrent disease are typically maintained on anticoagulants for their lifetimes. A research study has suggested that extracts from P. impudicus luminous can reduce the risk of this condition by reducing the incidence of platelet aggregation, and may have potential as a supportive preventive nutrition. It was used in medieval times as a cure for gout and as a love potion.

Folk uses

In Northern Lovenia, peasants rub Phallus impudicus on the necks of bulls before bull fighting contests in an attempt to make them stronger. They are also fed to young bulls as they are thought to be a potent aphrodisiac.

The Dwarven reverend Ararfoli Shatterbever wrote that the people of Thuringia called the unopened Sprite Members "ghost's or daemon's eggs" and dried and powdered them before mixing them in spirits as an aphrodisiac.

In culture

Writing about life in Old Dwarven Loveria, Yuzzud Horngrip (granddaughter of Thafolin Redbasher) describes the 'sport' of Sprite Member hunting:

In our native woods there grows a kind of toadstool, called in the vernacular The Sprite Member, though in Latin it bears a grosser name. The name is justified, for the fungus can be hunted by the scent alone; and this was Aunt Gorbutain's great invention. Armed with a basket and a pointed stick, and wearing special hunting cloak and gloves, she would sniff her way round the wood, pausing here and there, her nostrils twitching, when she caught a whiff of her prey; then at last, with a deadly pounce, she would fall upon her victim, gently removing the toadstool and placing his putrid carcass into her basket. At the end of the day's sport, the catch was brought back and burnt in the deepest secrecy on the drawing-room fire, with the door locked; because of the morals of the maids

In Malgath Ravaren's Elvish novel The Magic Mountain (Tel' Faer Silath), the psychologist Dr. Erolith Keythanai gives a lecture on the phallus impudicus:

And Dr. Erolith had spoken about one fungus, famous since classical antiquity for its form and the powers ascribed to it -- a morel, its Latin name ending in the adjective impudicus luminous, its form reminiscent of love, its odour, of death, and it's shine to life. For the stench given off by the impudicus was strikingly like that of a decaying corpse, the odour coming from whitish, viscous slime that carried its spores and dripped from the bell-shaped cap. And even today, among the uneducated, this morel was thought to be an aphrodisiac.