Updated: October 10, 2026
Mushroom spores are sold strictly for microscopy and research purposes only. Cultivation of Psilocybin-containing fungi is illegal in many jurisdictions. This page is not a guide to finding, growing, or taking mushrooms.
Short answer: Albino A+ is a trade name for material sold as Psilocybe Cubensis (Earle) Singer. It is not a separate species, a published variety, or a recognised variant. Sellers describe it as a pale or "leucistic" form of a line they call "A" or "A+," and several say outright that the "albino" in the name is a misnomer. They disagree on the parent's name and none gives a collector, a place or a date. Under a microscope, a sample shows the spore characters of P. cubensis, which cannot confirm the label or the parentage.
Home » Strain Encyclopedia » Psilocybe Cubensis » Albino A+
In this guide
- What Albino A+ is
- Taxonomy
- What is documented and what is lore
- Spore and cap traits
- "Albino" versus "leucistic"
- Origin claims, source by source
- Names and look-alike names
- Identifying it, and what a microscope can't tell you
- Examining a slide
- Mushly products
- Legal note
- References
- FAQ
What Albino A+ is
Albino A+ is one of many named lines of Psilocybe cubensis in Mushly's all-strains library. The name is a catalogue label used by spore sellers. It describes a product and not a taxon, and a parent named in a seller's text is a claim and not a lineage record. For the difference between a species and a trade name, see our species vs strain primer and the Psilocybe cubensis species guide.
"Albino A+ is a trade name for Psilocybe cubensis, not a species or published variety. Sellers call it a leucistic mutation of the A strain or A+, not a true albino; none names a collector or date. Claims compared."
Taxonomy
| Rank | Entry |
|---|---|
| Kingdom | Fungi |
| Phylum | Basidiomycota |
| Class | Agaricomycetes |
| Order | Agaricales |
| Family | Placement varies by source: Index Fungorum, Species Fungorum and NCBI list Agrocybaceae, while Wikipedia and many other references use Hymenogastraceae |
| Genus | Psilocybe |
| Species | Psilocybe cubensis (Earle) Singer, Sydowia 2(1-6): 37 (1948) |
| Basionym | Stropharia cubensis Earle (1906), described from Cuba |
| Trade name | Albino A+ (informal) |
Species records: Index Fungorum 290107, the Species Fungorum synonymy and NCBI Taxonomy 181762. None lists Albino A+.
What is documented and what is lore
| Question | Status |
|---|---|
| Is Albino A+ a species or published variety? | No. The only formal name is Psilocybe cubensis. |
| Spore size and shape | Published for the species only, with no Albino A+-specific measurements. |
| "Leucistic mutation of the A strain" | Seller claim only, worded differently by each seller ("A Strain," "A+ strain," "A+ lineage"). No genetic or laboratory evidence is given. |
| A named person behind the strain | Not established. One seller credits a "Workman" for the origin note and another credits "Mr. G" for the parent. Neither is a published collector. |
| Date or place of origin | Not stated by any seller. |
| Published literature using the name | One 2025 paper describes white, leucistic fruiting bodies and gives no origin, parent, collector or year (see References). Nothing else is known. |
Spore and cap traits
Short answer: the published measurements describe the species, not this name.
Singer and Smith's 1958 Mycologia monograph (Mycological investigations on Teonanácatl) describes P. cubensis spores as:
- Size: 11.5-17.3 × 8-11.5 × 7-9 µm
- Surface: smooth, with a thick, complex wall
- Apex: truncate, from a distinct apical pore
- Colour in a mountant: dark yellow brown in KOH, dark olive brown in NH4OH
The KOH and NH4OH colours are mountant colours, not spore-print colours. The paper does not mention Albino A+. Guzmán et al. (2012) give a second species-level range of (12-)13-15(-17) × 8-10(-11) × 7-9 µm.
Seller descriptions are not diagnostic, and they differ. These are descriptions, not measurements:
- Caps: Spores101 says "pale creamy white with golden undertones that progressively darken throughout maturity," 70-165 mm; Sonoran Spores says "white to creamy," 35-75 mm, "convex to conic"; Spore Genetics says "creamy-white to bluish"; DoubleBlind says caps range from white to cream to yellow, with some taking a brownish tint. The cap size ranges of Spores101 and Sonoran Spores do not agree.
- Spore colour: Spores101 says "purple," Sonoran Spores says "dark purple to brownish," Spore Genetics says "a full, dark spore deposit." Those two statements disagree, and neither is a measurement.
- Ralphsters gives no cap or spore description.
None of the pages we checked gives a measured spore size for this label. Record what you actually see on your own slide.
Albino versus leucistic
Short answer: most sellers say Albino A+ is leucistic, not albino, and the difference shows in the spores.
Spore Genetics defines it this way: "A true albino produces no pigment at all," while a leucistic mushroom "has heavily reduced pigment in its cap and stem but still produces normal dark, pigmented spores." Spores101 says "A true albino requires albino spores, and Albino A+ has pigmented spores," and Sonoran Spores calls the name "misleading." Ralphsters says "the strain is not a true Albino" and describes a "very high ratio of producing Albino Fruits due to successive cloning." These are seller and blog statements, and none is backed by a lab result for this line.
That is a point a microscope slide and a print can speak to, which is why it matters here: a fruit-body colour does not decide it, and the spores do. Record the print colour and the mountant colour separately, and do not rely on the label.
Origin claims
Short answer: the sellers agree it is a pale form of an "A" line, then disagree on what the parent is called.
| Source | What it says |
|---|---|
| Spores101 | "A recent leucistic mutation of Mr. G's A Strain," attributing the information to "Workman." Calls the name a misnomer. Names no collector or date. |
| Sonoran Spores | "Derived from the A+ strain that mutated and turned leucistic," and "isolated and kept most likely for its looks." Names no collector or date. |
| Spore Genetics | "A leucistic mutation of the classic A strain." Gives no person, place or date. |
| Ralphsters | "Combines the large heavy fruits of the A Strain with the much sought after Albino novelty," and "not a true Albino." Names no origin, collector or date. |
| DoubleBlind (Sept 29, 2023, updated Dec 19, 2023) | Calls it "a leucistic mutation of another P. cubensis variety, the classic A+ mushroom," and says "A+ originated with the infamous Mr G." Says its closest genetic relative is "Golden Teacher," which it calls an assumption. Names no collector of Albino A+. |
The sellers agree on a pale or leucistic form and on "the A line" as the parent. They disagree on whether that parent is called "A Strain," "A+ strain" or "A+ lineage," and nobody shows these are the same thing. Spores101 and DoubleBlind both credit "Mr. G," but one ties him to the A Strain and the other to A+, and neither gives a source. The "Golden Teacher" relationship is one writer's assumption. We do not state a parent, a person, a place or a year as fact. A repeated claim is still one claim.
Names and look-alike names
- A Strain, A+ and Albino A, Albino A+, AA+: sellers use these labels for the same product or for near neighbours, and no source that separates them is known. "A Leucistic" is a name some sellers say is more accurate (DoubleBlind).
- Albino Penis Envy is a separate catalogue label with its own story. See our Albino Penis Envy page. Sharing the word "albino" does not show a shared lineage.
- Mexican Albino and other "albino" labels are separate catalogue names. See the strain library.
- Golden Teacher appears in one article as a possible relative of A+. No source that proves it is known, so we take no side.
Record the exact label, supplier and date on every sample.
Identifying it
Short answer: microscopy supports a species-level note, not a strain identity.
- What a match shows: smooth, thick-walled spores with a truncate apex and germ pore, within the published species range, support P. cubensis as the species to compare. Ramírez-Cruz et al. 2013 notes that spore characters overlap across Psilocybe.
- What it cannot show: that a packet is Albino A+ rather than another pale cubensis label, that it descends from any "A" line, or that it came from any person or place.
- Chemistry: Mushly makes no claims about the chemical content of Albino A+, and no published laboratory analysis under this name is known.
Examining a slide
Follow the general method in our Golden Teacher guide and the mushroom spores guide, and then:
- Measure at least 20 spores (length × width) and record the magnification and mountant.
- Note the germ pore, the wall, and the shape in face and side view.
- Record the colour in the mountant and the print colour separately, because a pale fruit body with dark spores is the seller's meaning of "leucistic."
- Write down the exact label (Albino A+), supplier and date.
- Remember the limit: a fit to P. cubensis does not prove the Albino A+ label.
Mushly products
Mushly lists an Albino A+ spore syringe and an Albino A+ spore print. Stock and prices are shown on each product page, and both were out of stock when we last checked (October 3, 2026). The syringe page title reads "Albino A+ Spore Syringe 12cc"; the 12 cc refers to the volume of the syringe, not a spore size. Products are sold for microscopy only, and a product listing is not evidence of the origin stories above. Browse our spore syringes for microscopy for current stock.
Legal note
Mushly offers spores for microscopy, taxonomy, and mycological research. Laws on spores, and on psilocybin-containing mushrooms, differ by country and by U.S. state, and cultivation of psilocybin- or psilocin-containing species is illegal under U.S. federal law and in many other jurisdictions. Check the law where you live before ordering.
Browse spore syringes · Strain library · Mushroom spores for microscopy guide
References
- Index Fungorum 290107; Species Fungorum synonymy; NCBI Taxonomy 181762
- Singer, R. & Smith, A.H. (1958), Mycologia 50
- Guzmán et al. 2012, Mycotaxon 119: 65-81
- Ramírez-Cruz et al. 2013, Canadian Journal of Botany
- Kurzbaum et al. 2025, J. Fungi 11(2): 99 (for "white and leucistic" fruiting bodies)
- Seller and magazine claims (not papers, not verified): Spores101; Sonoran Spores; Spore Genetics; Ralphsters; DoubleBlind, 2023; Sporeworks and Mushroom Clubhouse
What is Albino A+?