The Envy of Cubensis Mushrooms: Penis Envy

Penis Envy magic mushrooms are some of the most sought-after fungi varieties in the mycology community. They have a complex and fascinating origin story that’s added to their lore. 

This mushroom’s exotic and sensational background includes everything from “blue goo” oozing from native’s bodies, to an unsolved murder, to strippers, the Amazon jungle and more!

Penis Envy’s Sordid Backstory

An article written in 2009 for Vice, by Hamilton Morris, starts us down this intriguing road. Morris first points to well-known ethnobotanist Terrence McKenna and his excursion to the Amazon in 1971 to experience for himself the stories of natives and shamans in the region that reportedly secreted a blue substance from their body while under the influence of a tribal psychedelic. 

During this trip, McKenna discovered a unique mutation of Psilocybe cubensis growing from cattle dung. McKenna collected spore sprints, made his way back to the United States, and sent Steven Pollock, renowned mycologist, a sample of the spores.

After successfully cultivating the spores, Pollock was shocked to see huge fruit that dwarfed anything else that had been discovered in the west to date. Years of experimentation and crossing specific genetics of the healthiest samples, Pollock had achieved his purported goal: create a penis-shaped mushroom.

Stories claim that Pollock then sent spore samples of his “penis mushroom” to Washington State, and returned home to an untimely demise. While his murder still remains unsolved, details include three men shooting Pollock in the back of the head, and San Antonio police confiscating nearly 1,800 jars of mushrooms and setting it all ablaze in a local landfill.

Who received these spores that Pollock had shipped to WA? Enter Richard Gee, a PNW mycologist, who received these samples and spent the next decade perfecting the species. The claims of Gee’s involvement as the source of sharing Penis Envy with the rest of the world is difficult to prove. 

So How Did the Penis Envy Strain Originate?

Rumors stated that Gee reported that Terrence McKenna himself developed the mushroom; however, the people closest to McKenna knew nothing of the sort. This is where the mystery of the story takes a turn. 

Rich Gee was known to be a recluse in the PNW, but Hamilton Morris was able to invite and interview Gee in 2021 on his podcast. During this interview, Gee confirmed the initial discovery of the mushroom and its spores by McKenna, and provided more clarity on how he came about the spores himself. 

Gee explains that he did not, in fact, receive the spores from Pollock, but from his friend Jules Stevens – who obtained them from a friend who received them directly from McKenna, effectively making Pollock’s research independent from Gee’s.

Gee was able to create a clean culture and cultivate them on a high-quality manure substrate that he developed. He chose the largest and healthiest fruit to clone, but it was not with the phallic-shaped purpose that many would think. He had always regarded the strain as “Amazons,” and the name came about only after a chance meeting with some strippers who saw and described them as “donkey dongs.” 

That prompted Gee to ask, “Do you have penis envy?” And voila! Penis Envy they became.

While the lore of Penis Envy has fascinated the mycology community for years, these mushrooms have also given us numerous subvarieties that we will visit next.   

Penis Envy Subvarieties

Albino Penis Envy

Albino Penis Envy, or APE for short, is a fascinating mutation of the OG Penis Envy. It is very rare to find albino mushrooms growing naturally in the wild, but it still happens. APE is an isolation that was achieved through cloning an albino specimen and transferring repeatedly until the albino trait was stabilized.

A true Albino Penis Envy will drop very clear spores, which are invisible to the naked eye. Collection of these spores are typically taken using swabs. The fruit of this stable strain will produce white-gray, almost blue caps on top of sturdy and solid stems. 

A.P.E. Revert

Albino Penis Envy Revert, or APE-R, is another variation of the Albino Penis Envy strain, that exhibits the albino or leucistic mutation of Albino Penis Envy. The fruiting body maintains much of the same phallic structure, but will lack pigmentation appearing white, or with some light yellow to brown coloring.

APE Revert is an isolation created by Jake Oncid in 2019. This variety retains more stability in consistency, more resistant to contamination, and functional pigmented spore prints.

APE Revert magic mushrooms do drop pigmented purplish-brown spores, but retain the genetic mutation to produce pigment free to slightly pigmented fruit.

Leucistic Penis Envy Uncut

Leucistic Penis Envy Uncut, also known as LPEU, is another fascinating variation of the original Penis Envy magic mushroom. Leucistic Penis Envy Uncut magic mushrooms are a rare mutation of Penis Envy Uncut, and were popularized in 2020.

Leucistic Penis Envy Uncut does, in fact, have brown to yellowish spores, and will produce fruit with quite stable leucism, but does contain some variability. The title “uncut” refers to the membranous annulus (the ring present around the stem after the veil ruptures) that the original Penis Envy cubensis lacks.

P.E.U. Revert

Penis Envy Uncut Revert, also known as PEU Revert or PEU-R, is another great variation of the original Penis Envy magic mushroom. It is a hybrid of the PF Albino and original Penis Envy. Mycologists were attempting to create an albino variation of Penis Envy, but found that the crossed genetics did not always produce white fruit. However, the physical characteristics and behavior of the veil created a variation that had yet to be seen. Hence, the creation of Penis Envy Uncut.

Penis Envy Uncut Revert magic mushrooms are a slight variation of Penis Envy Uncut in the sense they do have a higher rate of producing spore prints, but with much fewer albino spores. PEU Revert magic mushroom spores are dark purple to black, and sub-ellipsoid on 4-spore basidia.

Penis Envy #6

Penis Envy #6, also known as PE6, is a hybrid that was created by breeding the original Penis Envy with a “Texas” cubensis, by the well-known mycologist, “RogerRabbit.”

By breeding the original Penis Envy with a “Texas” cubensis, the new variety was able to retain the characteristics of Penis Envy, but whose caps opened and dropped spores. Interestingly, RogerRabbit was in the process of perfecting the strain when its prints were accidently released after being sent to a fellow mycologist.

PE 6 is a great variety for microscopy research purposes and is known to produce very large caps ranging from dark to light brown. Its stems are thick and dense; much like the original Penis Envy.

Tidal Wave

Tidal Wave is a highly sought after magic mushroom spore to research. Doma, from MagicMyco, is responsible for this fantastic cultivar. It is the love child of the legendary Albino Penis Envy and B+.

Tidal Wave produces beautiful spore prints, presenting a dark brown to purplish hue, with sub-ellipsoid shaped spores. The fruit the spores produce have a very distinct “wave” towards the edges of the caramel to golden brown cap.

Other variations of the OG Penis Envy include Trans Envy, Pearly Gates, and Yeti. One could argue that Penis Envy has been the most used medium to create a number of fantastic new cultivars for the mycology and microscopy community to research.

PLEASE NOTE: while purchasing magic mushroom spores is legal in the United States, it is important to remember that magic mushroom cultivation is outlawed in many countries, including most U.S. states. Please review your local laws to make sure you’re following regulations correctly.