Pisolithus arhizus
species of fungus
Pisolithus arhizus, commonly known as the dead man's foot, dyeball, pardebal, or Bohemian truffle, is a widespread earthball-like fungus.
Description
The fruiting body is 5–30 centimetres (2–12 in) tall and 4–20 cm (1+1⁄2–8 in) wide, with a thin yellow-brown to brown exterior layer. The spores are brown.
Dictyocephalos attenuatus is similar.
Uses
This puffball's black viscous gel is used as a natural dye for clothes. Pisolithus arhizus is a major component in mycorrhizal fungus mixtures that are used in gardening as powerful root stimulators. It is inedible.
Culture
In South Africa, it is known as the pardebal, and in Europe, it is known as the Bohemian truffle.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Pisolithus arhizus” as species of fungus. 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 species of fungus. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated Nov 11, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q1315936. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
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This entry incorporates text from “Pisolithus arhizus” 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.