First described by Jean Louis Émile Boudier in 1885, I. maculatum is found throughout Europe, Asia and North America.

I. maculatum f. fulvum I. maculatum I. cookei I. quietiodor I. rhodiolum I. adaequatum I. erubescens The species was given its specific epithet, "maculata" (from the Latin for "spotted"),[4] by Jean Louis Émile Boudier in 1885 in an article in the Bulletin de la Société Botanique de France.

In response, mycologist Thom Kuyper has listed over thirty specific names and varieties as synonyms of Inocybe lacera, which is still generally recognised.

[3] It has also been suggested that Inocybe lanatodisca is a synonym, but where the species occur together, they can be distinguished from each other, and so it is still recognised as distinct.

The stem is up to 8 cm (3.1 in) in length, and generally cylindrical in shape, though it is often thicker towards the base.

[10] Inosperma maculatum has thin-walled cheilocystidia, which are clavate (club-shaped), lack encrustation at the apex,[10] and are colourless.

[5] The sterigmata (the narrow horns on the end of the basidia which hold the spores) are 4 to 5 μm long.

[13] As well as beech, the species has been recorded growing in association with hornbeam, hazel, oak and lime.

Inocybe maculata f. fulva favours birch, spruce, pine, Populus, willow, (as well as Dryas and Polygonum in alpine regions).

[9] It is found from western Europe to eastern Asia;[5][10][14] and in North America, from where it was first collected in the 1960s.

[13] Consumption of the mushroom could lead to a number of physiological effects, including: salivation, lacrimation, urination, defecation, gastrointestinal problems and emesis (vomiting); this array of symptoms is also known by the acronym SLUDGE.

[15] Other potential effects include a drop in blood pressure, sweating and death due to respiratory failure.