What is Psilocybe cubensis?
Psilocybe cubensis is currently one of the most popular and commonly available natural psychedelics. This species is known under several other names such as Stropharia cubensis, Stropharia cyanescens or Stropharia caerulescens, but the most common name is the ‘Mexican mushroom’. This mushroom is very easy to grow, and therefore it is one of the most used hallucinogenic mushrooms all over the world. More than 180 species of fungi are recognized as containing the tryptamine alkaloids psilocine and/or psilocybine. They are Agaricales and include the genera Psilocybe (117 species), Gymnopilus (13 species), Panaeolus (7 species), Copelandia (12 species), Hypholoma (6 species), Pluteus (6 species), Inocybe (6 species), Conocybe (4 species), and Agrocybe, Galerina and Mycena (one each). Concerning the distribution of Psilocybe, the majority of the species are found in the subtropical humid forests of Mexico and New Guinea. Mexico has the highest number of neurotropic fungi, with 76 species),