Sphaerobolus
genus of fungi
Sphaerobolus is a genus of fungi in the family Geastraceae. Commonly known as the "shotgun fungus", "artillery fungus" or "cannonball fungus", species discharge their spores with explosive force. Discharged spore sacs are sticky and have a tendency to strongly adhere to whatever surface they encounter, making them a nuisance to homeowners, pressure washing contractors, landscape mulch producers and insurance companies.
Taxonomy and classification
The generic name is derived from the Greek words sphaer, meaning "sphere", and obolus, meaning "to throw". Sphaerobolus was first described by the Italian priest and biologist Pier Antonio Micheli (as Carpobolus) in 1729. Formerly, the genus was placed either in its own family, the Sphaerobolaceae, in the order Sclerodermatales, or, more commonly, in the order Nidulariales.
Currently, the genus is placed in the family Geastraceae.
Recent phylogenetic analysis suggests that Sphaerobolus should be placed in the gomphoid-phalloid clade along with related genera like Geastrum, Phallus, Pseudocolus, Ramaria, Clavariadelphus, Gomphus and Gautieria. Within the genus, three highly supported clades may be discerned, corresponding to S. stellatus, S. iowensis, and the recently described taxon S. ingoldii.
Description
Sphaerobolus stellatus, the most common species, is common on wood mulch worldwide.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Sphaerobolus” as genus of fungi. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
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The subject matters to the science & nature register because the source frames it as genus of fungi. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Datasets, specimens, observations and peer-reviewed methods provide the appropriate test for the technical claims summarized here. The source revision retrieved here is dated Nov 28, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q1393177. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1729.
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This entry incorporates text from “Sphaerobolus” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.