High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Myriostoma is a genus of fungus in the family Geastraceae. The genus is monotypic, containing the single species Myriostoma coliforme. It is an earthstar, so named because outer wall of the spore-bearing body splits open into the shape of a star. The inedible fungus has a cosmopolitan distribution, and has been found in Africa, Asia, North and South America, and Europe, where it grows on humus-rich forest or woodland floor, especially on well-drained and sandy soils. This somewhat rare fungus was included in 2004 in a list of 33 species proposed for protection under the Bern Convention by the European Council for Conservation of Fungi, and included on the Red Lists of 12 European countries.