Local Name
Khork’lebiani gudapshuk’a (1).

Description
Fruiting Body: The fruiting body shaped like an inverted pear, with a fairly prominent stem-like area and a roundish to flattened top, 3–6 cm wide, 3–8 cm high, dry, covered with whitish spines when young and fresh, but the spines often falling away by maturity and leaving scars on the surface. Flesh: The flesh is white at first, later with yellowish to olive. Spores: The spores are 3 X 4 µm, subglobose or broadly ellipsoid, with low warts, olive.
Habitat: On soils, in mixed woodland, on meadows and grasslands. Season: Summer, autumn.
Distribution: All regions of Georgia (2).

Uses
Edibility: Edible when young and fresh (1).

Note: Locals often can’t see difference between the most parts of Bovista and Lycoperdon representatives, and they use the same name for the fungi from both species.

References
1. Nakhutsrishvili, I.G. (2007) Fungi of Georgia. Tbilisi: Buneba Printi.
2. Nakhutsrishvili, I.G., et al. (1986) Flora of Spore-producing Plants of Georgia (Summary). Tbilisi: Metsniereba (Russian).