Hygrophorus hypothejus - Herald of Winter

Taxonomy

Phylum: Basidiomycota

Class: Agaricomycetes

Order: Agaricales

A waxcap of pine forests and mixed pine and broadleaf woodland, Hygrophorus hypothejus is a late-season species. It has a bright yellow stem and a distinct ring zone, and so you might expect to spot this mushroom without any difficulty; but looking down on caps that are various shades of brown and olive against a background of dead leaves and pine needles they are all too easy to miss. The trick is to stand still and look carefully at a smallish area of the forest floor before moving on and trying another. Once you have found one Herald of Winter, the rest of the gang seem to throw off their camouflage and surrender without too much of a struggle. This is one of those mushrooms that favour the compacted earth beside forest walks, and so wandering off the beaten track is rarely an advantage. This waxcap is mycorrhizal with pines.

Identification Guide

Cap	Various shades of olive brown, the margin paler and more yellow than the central region; convex, flattening, sometimes centrally depressed; slimy when wet; the margin is sometimes wavy at maturity; 3 to 6cm across.
	Gills Pale yellow, turning browner with age; distant; adnate or decurrent.
Stem	Pale yellow, sometimes tinged with orange; cylindrical; 4 to 7cm long, 0.7 to 1.4cm dia.
Spore print	White.
Odour/taste	Not distinctive.
Habitat	Under pine - more common in northern England and in Scotland than in the south of Britain and Ireland.
Season	June to November.
Occurrence	Fairly common in Scotland; uncommon further south.
Similar species	The Date Waxcap, Hygrocybe spadicea, is a rare grassland species with a dark brownish cap.