Cap
|
5 - 8 cm diameter; tawny orange with a paler
area around the edge of the cap. Initially egg-shaped, the cap expands
to become flat but with a small raised central area (an umbo). The
edge of the cap is striated (with comb-like radial ridges). |
Gills
|
White, free and crowded. |
Stipe
|
10 - 15 cm long and 1 - 1.5 cm
in diameter, tapering (narrower at the top); white with zig-zag
patterning in a paler shade of the cap colour. There is no ring, but at
the base of the stipe there is a large white sack-like volva. |
Spore print
|
White. |
Odour/taste
|
Not distinctive. |
Habitat
|
Mycorhizal with hardwood and softwood trees;
commonly found beside woodland paths. |
Season
|
July to October. |
Occurrence
|
Frequent. |
Similar species
|
- Amanita caesarea (Caesar's Mushroom) is rarely if ever
found in southern Europe; its cap is brilliant orange with a
striated margin, and the stipe is yellow.
- Amanita crocea has a yellowish-orange cap with an apricot
tinge at the centre. It has cream rather than white gills and a more
brittle stipe that is often hollow in mature fruit bodies. It has a
sweet smell and a nutty taste.
|
