Italy Counts Its Psychedelic Mushrooms: Nine Psilocybe Species Revealed

Italy has produced its first comprehensive national account of the genus Psilocybe, identifying nine taxa growing on Italian soil, according to a study in Italian Botanist. Researchers affiliated with the University of Palermo, working under the Network for the Study of Mycological Diversity and sponsored by ISPRA, combined classical taxonomy, herbarium research, and DNA barcoding. The paper covers habitats ranging from alpine forests in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol to mountain woodlands in Calabria. Psilocybe species contain psilocybin, which is converted in the body into psilocin—the active compound linked to psychoactive effects. Using the 2005 Checklist of Italian Fungi as a starting point and Index Fungorum as of November 2025, the team updated nomenclature, transferring multiple taxa to other genera and flagging Psilocybe ericacea as a nomen nudum.