Though considered a little brown mushroom of unknown edibility, it is distinctive because of its thick covering of coarse hairs, and differentiated from other members of Crinipellis by its slightly larger cap size, which reaches up to 25 mm (1.0 in) in diameter.

The species was first named as Agaricus zonatus by American mycologist Charles Horton Peck in 1872, based on specimens found near Albany, New York.

[7] Crinipellis zonata is a little brown mushroom with a cap of 1 to 2.5 cm (0.4 to 1.0 in) in diameter, which is convex (sometimes approaching flat) in shape.

The cheilocystidia (cystidia found on the edges of gills) are 20–45 by 5.0–9.0 μm, cylindrical, club-shaped or fusoid, irregular, and branched or coral-like.

[6] The cap and stem hairs are dextrinoid, meaning that they are stained yellowish-brown or reddish-brown by the iodine of Melzer's reagent.

[10] According to Shaffer and Weaver, it differs macroscopically from the typical variety in having cream- to buff-colored cap and stem, and pale pinkish-cinnamon gills.

[10] Though similar in appearance to other members of Crinipellis, such as C. stipitaria and C. piceae, C. zonata has a slightly larger cap.

[13][14] The Ghanaian species Crinipellis ghanaensis is also similar, but may be distinguished by its lighter-colored cap without a "corrugated appearance", and its distribution.

[15] Crinipellis zonata is saprobic,[8] living on the debris or roots of hardwoods;[9] it contains wood-decaying enzymes that can break down the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon pyrene.