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March 11, 2026<\/p>\n
2 min read<\/p>\n
Add Us On Google<\/span>Add SciAm<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Where did magic mushrooms come from? Scientists just got closer to an answer<\/p>\n Scientists just discovered a new species of magic mushroom, Psilocybe ochraceocentrata, that appears to have shared a common ancestor with the popular Psilocybe cubensis some 1.5 million years ago.<\/p>\n By Jackie Flynn Mogensen edited by Claire Cameron<\/span><\/p>\n Alexander_Volkov\/Getty Images<\/p>\n When you think about magic mushrooms, you are likely thinking of Psilocybe cubensis, perhaps the most popular species. Where these fungi came from and how they evolved their psychoactive properties is somewhat of a mystery. But a newly discovered sister species could provide a clue.<\/p>\n In a new study published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, researchers describe Psilocybe ochraceocentrata, a magic mushroom found in Africa that is similar to P. cubensis but a unique species. The new species has been misidentified as P. cubensis or other mushrooms for years, but the new study suggests that the two species likely shared a common ancestor some 1.5 million years ago.<\/p>\n \u201cOur study suggests that the evolutionary cradle of the world\u2019s most famous magic mushroom may lie in Africa, where collections that were previously misidentified now represent a distinct indigenous species,\u201d says Breyten van der Merwe, a Ph.D. student in chemical engineering at Stellenbosch University in South Africa and a co-author on the study. \u201cNew descriptions like these reveal both diversity and how little we still know about African fungi.\u201d<\/p>\n If you’re enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.<\/p>\n Psilocybe ochraceocentrata is found growing on cattle dung in the grasslands of southern Africa and Zimbabwe.<\/p>\n Interestingly, both P. cubensis and P. ochraceocentrata rely on dung\u2014whether from cattle, bison, goats, horses, or other animals\u2014to spread their spores. The researchers used \u201cmuseomics,\u201d or genetic analyses of mushroom species already held in museums or other collections, to determine that the two species likely diverged some 1.5 million years ago.<\/p>\n That timing aligns with other \u201cmajor ecological and faunal transitions,\u201d including herbivore migrations from Africa to Europe and Asia, the researchers note in the study, suggesting that changes in the dung landscape may be related to the species\u2019 split.<\/p>\n The study doesn\u2019t answer how P. cubensis arose in the Americas. According to the authors, it\u2019s possible that its ancestor crossed the Atlantic via atmospheric currents, insects or even ancient animal migrations, but more research is needed to say for sure.<\/p>\n \u201cFuture population genomic and demographic analyses will be key to testing these hypotheses and clarifying the species\u2019 dispersal history,\u201d the authors write.<\/p>\n If you enjoyed this article, I\u2019d like to ask for your support. Scientific American<\/span> has served as an advocate for science and industry for 180 years, and right now may be the most critical moment in that two-century history.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve been a Scientific American<\/span> subscriber since I was 12 years old, and it helped shape the way I look at the world. SciAm <\/span>always educates and delights me, and inspires a sense of awe for our vast, beautiful universe. I hope it does that for you, too.<\/p>\n If you subscribe to Scientific American<\/span>, you help ensure that our coverage is centered on meaningful research and discovery; that we have the resources to report on the decisions that threaten labs across the U.S.; and that we support both budding and working scientists at a time when the value of science itself too often goes unrecognized.<\/p>\n In return, you get essential news, captivating podcasts, brilliant infographics, can’t-miss newsletters, must-watch videos, challenging games, and the science world’s best writing and reporting. You can even gift someone a subscription.<\/p>\n There has never been a more important time for us to stand up and show why science matters. I hope you\u2019ll support us in that mission.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" March 11, 2026 2 min read Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAm Where did magic mushrooms come from? Scientists just got closer to an answer Scientists just discovered a new species of magic mushroom, Psilocybe ochraceocentrata, that appears to have shared a common ancestor with the popular Psilocybe cubensis some 1.5 million years ago. By Jackie<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":46436,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[58],"tags":[835,1208,9385,8379,384],"class_list":{"0":"post-46435","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-science","8":"tag-answer","9":"tag-closer","10":"tag-magic","11":"tag-mushrooms","12":"tag-scientists"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46435","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=46435"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46435\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/46436"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=46435"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=46435"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=46435"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}On supporting science journalism<\/h2>\n
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