Pholiota aurivella - Golden Scalycap

Taxonomy

Phylum: Basidiomycota

Class: Agaricomycetes

Order: Agaricales

Pholiota aurivella is an infrequent species in many areas but more common in the south-east of England and Wales where mature Beech trees are more abundant. Easily confused with other greasy-capped members of the genus Pholiota (the so-called scalycaps), such as Pholiota alnicola which grows on alders and Pholiota gummosa which is often seen growing in grass beside sick or dead deciduopus trees. The Golden Scalycap is one of the largest mushrooms in this group.

The splendid group of Golden Scalycaps pictured above are shown courtesy of Nigel P Kent.

Darker forms of the Golden Scalycap also occur. Shown on the left is a beautiful specimen photographed on a roadside tree near Leeds, in northern England; this picture is shown with the kind permission of Varsha Patel, who took the photograph.

Synonyms of Pholiota aurivella may include Pholiota cerifera, Pholiota adiposa and Pholiota squarrosa-adiposa; however, note the use of the word 'may' because there is still much debate about just how many species are contained in the grouping that most of us are content to call Golden Scalycaps (although some of these lovely but inedible mushrooms are much too brown to justify being called golden!).

Incidentally, the specific epithet aurivella means golden fleece - whenever you see -vell in a scientific name look for the fleecy characteristic to which it refers.

Identification Guide

	Cap 5 to 15cm in diameter, bright golden yellow to rusty brown and with a slimy or greasy surface covered in darker-brown scales that sometimes wash off in wet weather. The lovely specimens shown on the left are particularly dark - photo courtesy of Anthony Harding.
	Gills The crowded adnate gills are cream when young, turning reddish-brown as the spores develop. Stem 6 to 12mm in diameter and 3 to 9cm tall; lemon-yellow becoming browner with age; smooth above a pale cottony ring (persistent fragments of the partial veil) and having darker brown scales below the ring. The stem is solid with fibrous yellowish flesh.
Spore print	Reddish-brown.
Odour/taste	No distinctive odour; taste is rather bitter.
Habitat	On stumps, large fallen branches and dead trunks of deciduous hardwood trees, most commonly Beeches.
Season	September to December.
Occurrence	Infrequent.
Similar species	Pholiota alnicola is smaller and rarely has many cap scales.