Pileus 4-18 x 3-12 mm when still closed, 15-35 mm wide when expanded, first ellipsoid or ovoid, then campanulate to convex, finally flattened, sordid yellow- to redbrown, sulcate-striate up to centre, pale ochre (Mu. 10 YR 4/4-5, 5/5, 6/6, 7/3, 6/2, K. & W. 5B4; centre 7.5 YR 3/4, 4/4-6, K. & W. 7E8), soon more greyish. Lamellae, L = 22-38, l = 0-3, free and remote from stipe, white when very young, then grey-brown (K. & W. 6D4) to blackish. Stipe up to 120 x 1-2.5 mm, sordid whitish to pale yellow-brown (K. & W. 5A2), base somewhat clavate.
  Spores 9.9-14.3 x 7.2-10.3 x 6.5-8.1 µm, Q = 1.05-1.80, av. Q = 1.15-1.55, av. L = 11.1-12.8 µm, av. B = 8.1-9.5 µm, usually angularly ovoid with five rounded angles, sometimes almost ellipsoid, lentiform, rarely not distinct, with eccentric germ pore and convex or flattened base and rounded apex, dark red-brown. Basidia 20-42 x 9-12 µm, 4-spored, surrounded by 4-7 pseudoparaphyses. Pleurocystidia 60-100 x 22-35 µm, upper part 17-28 µm, utriform or subcylindric. Cheilocystidia 40-90 x 16-28 µm, utriform or sublageniform with 6-15(-18) µm wide neck, sometimes ellipsoid. Pileipellis smooth, hymeniform, made up of spheropedunculate cells. Clamp-connections present.

Habitat & distribution

  On lawns and other grassy places, seldom in the shade. Solitary in small groups, rarely a few together. Rather common. Wide-spread all over Europe and probably other continents.

Remarks

  Coprinus plicatilis is very closely related to C. leiocephalus but differ in the larger, more elongate spores, the somewhat smaller and more greyish basidicarps, the lamellae less crowed and prefering the habitat on more open, grassy places exclusively.