Amanita regalis - Brown Fly Agaric

Taxonomy

Phylum: Basidiomycota

Class: Agaricomycetes

Order: Agaricales

The Brown Fly Agaric, Amanita regalis, is not reported from Britain or Ireland, but it is quite common in Scandinavia. Apart from cap colour it is similar in size and form to the red Fly Agaric.

Like the Fly Agaric, this large member of the genus Amanita is also hallucinogenic and can cause sickness if eaten.

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Identification guide

Cap	10 - 20cm diameter; glossy brown; usually retaining irregular, white fragments of the universal veil; initially domed, but flattening at maturity.
Gills	White, free, crowded. The gills turn pale yellow as the fruitbody matures.
Stem	10 - 25cm long and 1.5 - 2cm in diameter; white and ragged with a grooved, hanging ring. The swollen base retains the white, sack-like remains of the volva, which eventually fragments into rings of scales around the base of mature specimens.
Spore print	White.
Odour/taste	Not distinctive.
Habitat	Mycorhizal with conifers, notably spruce.
Season	August to October.
Occurrence	Frequent in northern Europe.
Similar species	Amanita caesarea (Caesar's Mushroom) is rarely if ever found in northern Europe; its cap is brilliant orange with a striated margin, and the stipe is yellow. The caps of some examples of Amanita rubescens are glossy brown, but their stems and their cap flesh always turn red when damaged.