Cap |
The cap is pruinose and conical at first,
becoming more shiny and bell-shaped with age but not expanding to become
completely flat as some of the Entolomatacea do; diameter 1 to 6
cm; red-brown or date brown with the rim area a paler yellow-brown. |
Gills |
Cream at first, becoming pale pinkish-beige
with age, the gills are broad, crowded and free. |
Spores |
Pale pink. |
Stipe |
3 to 8 mm diameter; cream or beige at the
apex, graduating to dark brown at the base; velvety surface |
Odour/taste |
Not distinctive. |
Habitat |
Usually in small groups on disturbed, rich
soil; most common under broad-leaf trees, particularly beech, but also
in hazel coppices and occasionally under conifers |
Season |
Fruiting from July through to December; most
abundant in October and November. |
Occurrence |
Widespread and fairly common. |
Similar species |
- Pluteus cervinus is
more viscid and grows on rotting wood rather than in soil; its cap
usually flattens, whereas caps of Macrocystidia cuccumis remain more bell shaped.
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