These very large, perfectly round and smooth white mushrooms may grow up to 20 inches in diameter, sometimes even larger. They eventually turn yellow, then brown when its thin outer shell disintegrates. The spore mass, first white, turns a dark greenish-brown.
This mushroom is found alone or in small groups along trails, on flat ground above the railroad tracks in Fontenelle Forest and in other open areas in upland woods. Their abundance seems to vary greatly from year to year. It is found fresh in August and September. The disintegrating brown remains may be seen in winter.
Each of these puffballs can produce an amazing number of spores, estimated by some to be in the trillions.
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