Javan mocca or Javan slender caesar (Amanita javanica)

OPINION - Javan mocca or Javan slender caesar (Amanita javanica) is a mysterious fungus species and has been enigmatic since it was first reported by Boedijn in 1951 and after that no explanation or reporting of specimens is believed to be the same as expected.

Boedijn (1951) described A. javanica which grew on Java island as having the characteristics covered in the Amanita genus. Corner and Bas in 1962 tried to describe Javan mocca and all species in Amanita based on specimens in Singapore.

Over time some reports say that they have found A. javanica specimens in other Southeast Asia including also China, Japan, India and Nepal. But there is no definitive knowledge and many doubt whether the specimen is the same as described by Boedijn (1951).

I was fortunate to have seen this species one afternoon and soon I took out a camera for some shots. In fact, I've only met this mushroom species once. Javan mocca is an endangered species and I have never seen in my experience in years of exploring nature.

I found A. javanica in Menoreh mountains at an altitude of about 700 m in the Kaligesing District, Purworejo Regency, Central Java Province, Indonesia. They are two items which coincide on the forest floor on the red clay under the shade of merkus pine (Pinus merkusii).

They grow solitary and no other colleagues grow around it. As far as I'm concerned are the low plants around them between the dry leaves and the very high merkus pine. The Menoreh mountains are located in the middle of Java island which has a period of 6 months of rain and 6 months of dry season each year.

I hope my reports and videos will shed more light on this species which for decades has been a puzzle and a mystery. I gave the name Javan mocca for javanica and the color of mocha coffee. Happy watching and thank you.

Boedijn, K. B. 1951. Notes on Indonesian fungi. The genus Amanita. Sydowia 5(3-6): 317-327.
Corner, E. J. H. and C. Bas. 1962. The genus Amanita in Singapore and Malaya. Persoonia 2: 241-304.

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