This orange-yellow waxcap occurs mainly in grassland but is also found in woodland glades.
Cap |
Dryer than most waxcaps, the cap is yellow or yellow-orange and expands to typicaly 4 to 6 cm in diameter. It has a slight soapy or oily odour said (by those who go around sniffing such) to be reminiscent of bed bugs! If you squash a piece of gill material between your fingers the smell is more readily detectable. |
Gills |
The broad gills are widely spaced, paler than the cap, and deeply notched. |
Stipe |
Colour the same as the cap or a little paler, with no ring, the level diameter stipe is 5 to 10 mm in diameter and ranges between 2 and 7 cm tall. |
Spore print |
White. |
Odour/taste |
Slighly soapy . |
Habitat |
Close-cropped or mown acid
grassland where artificial fertilisers are not spread. |
Season |
August to December. |
Occurrence |
An infrequent find but often plentiful in those location in which it occurs. |
Similar species |
- Hygrocybe laeta is smaller. usually darker, and has decurrent gills.
- Hygrocybe intermedia is very similar but usually more orange and has a fibrous, non-greasy cap that does not smell soapy when squashed.
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