Species in the genus resemble awl-shaped teeth that grow in groups without a common subiculum (supporting layer of mycelium).

The type species was originally named Hydnum calvum in a collaborative effort by the German botanist Johannes Baptista von Albertini and the American Lewis David de Schweinitz in 1805.

[5] It had previously been placed in the Russulales due to its amyloid spores, and its morphological similarity to some members of genus Hericium.

[6] Mucronella is the sole genus in the Clavariaceae with amyloid spores, and with the "hanging spine" fruitbody morphology.

Khurana identified five species from the northwestern Himalayas, India, in 1974: M. bresadolae, M. calva, M. flava, M. subalpina, and M. pulchra.