Cap
 |
10 - 20 cm diameter; red or occasionally
orange; usually retaining irregular, white fragments of the universal
veil; initially domed, but flattening at maturity. When damaged, the
flesh just below the pellicle is initially white but soon turns yellow
on exposure to air. |
Gills
 |
White, free, crowded. The gills turn pale
yellow as the fruit body matures. |
Stipe
 |
10 - 25 cm long and 1.5 - 2 cm
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 hardwood and softwood trees,
notably birch and spruce. |
Season |
August to November. |
Occurrence |
Frequent; often recurring in the same place
for several years. |
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 samples of Amanita rubescens are deep
orange, but their stems and their cap flesh always turn red when
damaged.
- Russula marei (Beechwood Sickener) has a bright red cap
but no ring or volva; it is very brittle.
|
