Quick answer: Albino Penis Envy (APE) is the albino line of the Penis Envy strain of Psilocybe cubensis. It is widely reported as a cross between Penis Envy and PF Albino, an albino cubensis line from the 1990s, and it keeps the Penis Envy shape (thick stem, small closed cap) in white to ivory with bluish tones. Like its parent, it releases very few spores. Its spores are sparse and very pale, so they are hard to see.
Spores are legal to buy for microscopy in 46 states. Germinating them is not, which is why nothing on this page is about cultivation.
Looking for Albino Penis Envy spores?
Our Albino Penis Envy spore syringe is a 10 cc syringe, and it ships the same business day. Orders over $100 ship free, and our spore syringe packs save you up to 40%.
Intended use. Our Albino Penis Envy spore syringes are sold for microscopy, taxonomy and educational use only. This guide covers the strain’s history, what the mushroom looks like, and what its spores look like under a microscope. It does not cover cultivation, effects, potency or dosing, and we do not answer questions about them.
In this guide
- What Albino Penis Envy is
- History and origin
- Albino, leucistic and “revert”: what the words mean
- What the mushroom looks like
- What APE spores look like
- APE vs. Penis Envy
- Related strains
- Legal status of APE spores
- Frequently asked questions
- Sources
What Albino Penis Envy is
Albino Penis Envy, almost always shortened to APE, is a strain of Psilocybe cubensis and a member of the Penis Envy family. It combines two things: the Penis Envy body plan, a dense, thick stem topped by a small cap that stays closed or half-open, and albinism, a lack of the pigment that gives ordinary cubensis its golden cap and purple-brown spores. The result is a short, stout, white mushroom that often shows blue tones on the cap and stem and turns a silvery blue when dried. It has been one of the most requested strains in the hobby since the late 2010s.
History and origin
APE’s history is shorter than its parent’s. The consistent account, repeated by DoubleBlind’s 2021 history of Penis Envy and by most vendors, is that APE came from a cross of Penis Envy with PF Albino, an albino cubensis line that circulated in the 1990s through the Psylocybe Fanaticus spore catalog run by Robert McPherson in Washington State. It was bred by John Workman, a breeder who crossed Penis Envy with PF Albino. His posts on the Shroomery forum show the work under way in early 2006, and he posted “APE 1.0” in December 2007. APE became a catalog staple by the end of the 2010s.
The parentage is plausible on its face. PF Albino was a known albino line; Penis Envy was a known mutant line maintained by cloning; crossing them and selecting white offspring with the PE form is exactly how a hobbyist would arrive at APE. But the same caveat applies as to every named strain: there is no registry and no published genetics. A 2023 genome study in Current Biology found that cultivated cubensis lines descend from very few founders and are highly inbred, so “cross” in the hobbyist sense may describe a small genetic distance. Our Penis Envy guide covers the parent strain’s history, including the 2021 correction of the Steven Pollock story.
Albino, leucistic and “revert”: what the words mean
- Albino lines lack pigment entirely: white fruit bodies, and spores that are pale to nearly colorless instead of purple-brown. APE and True Albino Teacher are albino lines, and so is Jack Frost, a cross of the two.
- Leucistic lines have reduced pigment: cream or pale caps, and spores that still carry some color. Leucistic Golden Teacher and Leucistic A+ (sold almost everywhere as “Albino A+”, though it is leucistic) are examples.
- Revert (as in “APE Revert” or “Melmac Revert”) describes a line in which pigment has partly returned, giving tan or gray fruit bodies from an albino ancestor.
Vendors use these words loosely, so the microscope is the arbiter: a truly albino line shows near-colorless spores, a leucistic line shows lightly tinted ones.
What the mushroom looks like
- Cap: small, rounded, white to ivory, frequently with a bluish cast, and typically staying closed or only partly open at maturity, hugging the stem the way Penis Envy caps do.
- Stem: thick, dense and short, white, bruising blue strongly where handled, a trait shared across the species and especially visible against white flesh.
- Gills: attached, mostly hidden by the closed cap, pale gray rather than purple-brown because the spores carry little pigment.
- Spore print: sparse and pale; an APE print is often nearly invisible on white paper and faint even on foil, which is why APE syringes can look empty.
What APE spores look like
With little pigment, APE spores are nearly transparent. They are also sparse, because APE inherits Penis Envy’s weak sporulation, so a drop holds fewer spores than a Golden Teacher drop. In shape and size they are ordinary cubensis spores: smooth, thick-walled, subellipsoid with a germ pore, roughly 11–17 by 7–11 micrometers. Only the color is missing.
APE vs. Penis Envy
| Penis Envy | Albino Penis Envy | |
|---|---|---|
| Species | Psilocybe cubensis | Psilocybe cubensis |
| Origin | 1970s U.S., selected from Amazonian-collection spores (Rich Gee’s account) | PE × PF Albino cross bred by John Workman, 2006–2007 |
| Fruit body | Tan to caramel, thick stem, small closed cap | White to ivory with blue tones, thick stem, small closed cap |
| Spore print | Purple-brown, sparse | Pale to nearly colorless, sparse |
| Spores | Purple-brown, easy to see | Nearly transparent, hard to see |
Related strains
- Penis Envy, the parent; see our Penis Envy guide.
- PF Albino, the reported other parent, an albino line from the 1990s Psylocybe Fanaticus catalog that is rarely offered on its own today.
- APE Revert, a partly re-pigmented selection from APE.
- Jack Frost, a cross of True Albino Teacher with APE made around 2018 or 2019 by the breeder Dave Wombat; see our Jack Frost guide.
- Tidal Wave/APE (TW/APE) and Koh Samui × APE (KSAP), later crosses that bring APE’s albinism into other lines.
- Azul APE, a blue-toned selection sold under the APE name by some vendors.
Legal status of APE spores
APE spores contain no psilocybin or psilocin, so under federal law and the law of 46 states they are not a controlled substance; the DEA confirmed the federal position in writing in January 2024. California and Florida restrict spores, Georgia and Idaho ban them, and we do not ship Psilocybe spores to those four states. Germinating spores is illegal under federal law everywhere. Our state-by-state legal guide has every statute.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Albino Penis Envy mushroom?
The albino line of the Penis Envy strain of Psilocybe cubensis: a white, thick-stemmed mushroom with a small closed cap and nearly colorless spores.
What is APE’s scientific name?
Psilocybe cubensis. “Albino Penis Envy” is an informal strain name.
Where did Albino Penis Envy come from?
It was bred by John Workman, a breeder who crossed Penis Envy with PF Albino. His forum posts show the work under way in early 2006, and he posted “APE 1.0” in December 2007.
Albino Penis Envy vs. Penis Envy: what is the difference?
Same shape, different pigment. PE is tan with purple-brown spores; APE is white with pale, nearly colorless spores. Both produce few spores.
Why does my APE syringe look empty?
APE spores are sparse and unpigmented, so they are hard to see in the barrel. The spores are still in the syringe.
What is the difference between albino and leucistic?
Albino means no pigment (white fruit bodies, colorless spores). Leucistic means reduced pigment (pale fruit bodies, lightly tinted spores). APE is albino; Leucistic Golden Teacher is leucistic.
Are Albino Penis Envy spores legal?
Yes, for microscopy, in 46 states. Not in California, Florida, Georgia or Idaho, where we do not ship.
Do you sell APE spores?
Yes: a Albino Penis Envy spore syringe (a 10 cc syringe) with a sterile needle and a 30-day guarantee, for microscopy and taxonomy use only. You can see all of our strains on our spore syringes page.
Sources
- Busby M., “The Origins of Albino Penis Envy, According to the Man Who Created It” (DoubleBlind Magazine, August 1, 2024; updated August 7, 2024), interview with John Workman. doubleblindmag.com
- Shroomery forum archive (not linked): thread #5194890, “PF Albino and Penis Envy Cross Breeding,” started by Workman on January 18, 2006, with his follow-up posts that day on recessive traits; thread #7777258, “Albino Penis Envy APE 1.0,” started by Workman on December 19, 2007.
- Mandrake K., “Penis Envy Mushrooms: The Origin Story” (DoubleBlind Magazine, February 22, 2021; updated March 27, 2024), on the PE × PF Albino parentage and APE’s appearance. doubleblindmag.com
- McTaggart A.R. et al. (2023). “Domestication through clandestine cultivation constrained genetic diversity in magic mushrooms relative to naturalized populations.” Current Biology. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2023.10.059
- Kurzbaum E. et al. (2025). “Exploring Psilocybe cubensis Strains.” Journal of Fungi 11(2):99. PMC11856550
- DEA Diversion Control Division letter on the status of spores (January 2, 2024). PDF
Albino Penis Envy spore syringe
Our Albino Penis Envy spore syringe is a 10 cc syringe filled in our ISO-7 cleanroom, with a sterile needle included. Orders placed by 1 p.m. Eastern on a weekday ship the same day, to the 46 states where spores are legal. You get free shipping on orders over $100, up to 40% off with our 3-, 5- and 10-packs, and a 30-day warranty. It is sold for microscopy and taxonomy use only.
