Small to large agaric, growing on the ground or vertebrate animal carcasses, with a pinkish brown, rusty to ochre-brown, clay-brown or dark brown spore print. Pileus pale, brown or red or pink, viscid when fresh. Lamellae adnexed, adnate, sinuate or notched, rarely subdecurrent. Stipe central. Partial veil remnants absent or rarely a ring zone. Spores pale or yellow-brown, warty; germ pore absent. Cheilocystidia present. Lamellar trama regular. Pileipellis a cutis, rarely a trichoderm. Clamp connections present.

If fruit-bodies are fresh and the viscid pileus is apparent, Hebeloma can be distinguished from other brown-spored agarics growing on the ground and with warty spores by the absence of a plage (as in most Galerina) and the presence of cheilocystidia. Lepista has hyaline spores and lacks cheilocystidia. In Cortinarius, cheilocystidia are generally lacking, there is always a cobwebby partial veil, and the spore print is usually rusty, rather than the clay-brown or pinkish brown print typical of Hebeloma. In the field, larger species of Clitopilus morphogroup Rhodocybe can have pinkish tones to the pileus and lamellae, similar to Hebeloma, but the pileus is not viscid, and spores are hyaline, warty and angular in end view.

About five species: Hebeloma aminophilum (with animal carcasses), H. kammala, H. lamelliconfertum, H. serratum and H. westraliense. This genus is in need of revision. Also several introduced species with exotic trees: H. crustuliniforme, H. mesophaeum and H. testaceum.

Hebeloma victoriense is keyed out separately because of the combination of a well-developed annulus and a reddish brown spore print.

W.A., S.A., Qld, N.S.W., Vic. and Tas. (and probably also N.T.).

In native forests. Some species in parks and gardens with exotic trees (such as birch and pine).

On the ground. Some species ('ammonia fungi') associated with vertebrate animal remains or soil where urine (or other sources of nitrogen) has been added.

Ectomycorrhizal.

Bougher, N.L. (2009a), Fungi of the Perth region and beyond: a self-managed field book, Western Australian Naturalists' Club (Inc.), Perth. [Description and Illustration of H. crustuliniforme]

Bougher, N.L. & Syme, K. (1998), Fungi of Southern Australia. University of Western Australia Press, Nedlands. [Description, Illustration and Microcharacters of H. aminophilum and H. westraliense]

Bougher, N.L., Tommerup, I.C. & Malajczuk, N. (1991), Nuclear behaviour in the basidiomes and ectomycorrhizas of Hebeloma westraliense sp. nov., Mycol. Res. 95: 683–688. [Description, B&W Illustration and Microcharacters of H. westraliense]

Breitenbach, J. & Kränzlin, F. (2000), Fungi of Switzerland. Volume 5. Agarics. Part 3. Cortinariaceae. Edition Mykologia, Lucerne. [Illustration, Description and Microcharacters of 30 Swiss species, including H. crustuliniforme and H. mesophaeum]

Fuhrer, B. (2005), A Field Guide to Australian Fungi. Bloomings Books, Hawthorn. [Description and Illustration of H. aminophilum, H. crustuliniforme and H. kammala]

Grey, P. & Grey, E. (2005), Fungi Down Under. Fungimap, South Yarra. [Description, Illustration and Map for H. aminophilum]

Grgurinovic, C.A. (1997a), Larger Fungi of South Australia. The Botanic Gardens of Adelaide and State Herbarium and The Flora and Fauna of South Australia Handbooks Committee, Adelaide. [Description and Microcharacters of H. lamelliconfertum, H. crustuliniforme, H. kammala, H. mesophaeum, H. serratum and H. testaceum, and Illustration of several of these species]

McCann, I.R. (2003), Australian Fungi Illustrated. Macdown Productions, Vermont. [Illustration of H. aminophilum and a very similar looking unidentified species]

Miller, O.K., Jr & Hilton, R.N. (1987), New and interesting agarics from Western Australia, Sydowia 39: 126–137. [Description, B&W Illustration and Microcharacters of H. aminophilum]

Young, A.M. (2002c), Brief notes on Hebeloma aminophilum R.N. Hilton & O.K. Miller ('Ghoul Fungus') from northern Queensland and Tasmania, Australas. Mycol. 21: 79–80. [Illustration, Description and Microcharacters of H. aminophilum]

Young, A.M. (2005b), A Field Guide to the Fungi of Australia. University of New South Wales Press, Sydney. [Description and Illustration of H. aminophilum]