Russulaceae Gallery

Milkcaps and Brittlegills

Lactarius aurantiacus	Lactarius blennius	Lactarius camphoratus	Lactarius chrysorrheus	Lactarius deliciosus	Lactarius deterrimus
Lactarius glyciosmus	Lactarius pallidus	Lactarius piperatus	Lactarius pubesscens	Lactarius quietus	Lactarius repraesentaneus
Lactarius rufus	Lactarius subdulcis	Lactarius torminosus	Lactarius turpis	Lactarius uvidus	Lactarius vellereus
Lactarius vietus	Russula aeruginea	Russula atropurpurea	Russula aurea	Russula aurora	Russula chloroides
Russula claroflava	Russula cyanoxantha	Russula delica	Russula densifolia	Russula emetica	Russula farinipes
Russula fellea	Russula foetens	Russula fragilis	Russula grata	Russula illota	Russula laricina
Russula nigricans	Russula nobilis	Russula ochroleuca	Russula paludosa	Russula parazurea	Russula queletii
Russula rosea	Russula sanguinaria	Russula sardonia	Russula vesca	Russula virescens	Russula xerampelina

The family Russulaceae contains two genera: Lactarius and Russula. In Europe there are some 160 species in each of these genera. The two groups differ mainly in that Lactarius fungi produce a milky latex from their gills when damaged whereas Russula species do not. Both genera are characterised by brittle flesh and pale spores.

Russula and Lactarius species are different from most other mushrooms because rather than consisting of tube-like cells they contain spherical cells called sphaerocysts, making their texture less pliable and more fragile than other mushrooms.

Russula mushrooms - the Brittlegills

The Russula genus contains mushrooms of many colours, from white, yellow, tan and brown, through pink, orange red and purple to blue, mauve and even green. All brittlegills are ectomycorrhizal with trees or shrubs, and so they occur only in woodland settings or with shrubby plants (including, in some instances, heathers and other heathland species). The species illustrated here is Russula xerampelina; its cap colours are very variable - a characteristic of many of the brittlegills.

Brittlegills are fleshy fungi. Most of them are edible, although many species are too hot and acrid for most people's taste, and some - Russula nobilis for example - cause stomach upsets.

Lactarius mushrooms - the Milkcaps

The Lactarius mushrooms are known as milk caps because of the latex that is exuded from their gills when they are cut or broken. Like the brittlegills, milkcaps are mycorrhizal fungi, and they occur with trees or shrubs.

Illustrated here are Oakbug Milkcaps, Lactarius quietus, which is a very common species found in oak woodland.

The initial colour of the milk, its taste, and any colour change as the milk dries are valuable identification characters in a group with little cap colour variation.

Russula fungi are sometimes referred to as russules rather than brittlegills, while milkcaps are in older field guides generally referred to as milk caps or milk-caps.

Russulaceae Gallery

Russula mushrooms - the Brittlegills

Lactarius mushrooms - the Milkcaps

Fascinated by Fungi

Interactive CD-ROM Multimedia Guide to the Kingdom of Fungii