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Fungal Portraits
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Fungal Portraits No. 64: Cortinarius bolaris Geoffrey Kibby
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he genus Cortinarius is generally a very difficult one, with a large number of very similar species, but there are a few which stand out by their striking features that make them easy to identify. Cortinarius bolaris (Pers.:Fr.)Fr. (Fig. 1) is one such species. Like all Cortinarius species it is mycorrhizal, being associated with Fagus, Quercus and Betula and appears to be frequent and widespread in Britain. It belongs in the subgenus Telamonia sect. Anomali which was originally set up by Konrad & Maublanc to cover just the closely related group of species around C. anomalus, characterised by an often coloured universal veil and subglobose spores. The veil in C. bolaris forms scattered brownish red to cinnabar red scales spread over both the cap and the stem. The cap and stem surface are dry to the touch. The entire fruitbody
becomes increasingly bright cinnabar-red with age. When handled or bruised the surface changes to a bright yellow, as does the cut flesh. The cap can reach 3–7 cm in diameter and the stem 3–8 x 0.5–1 cm, the stem being cylindric to broadly clavate or even slightly tapered. The odour is faint and mushroomy but the taste is said to be peppery. The gills begin pale ochre but soon mature to a bright rust-brown as the spores develop. The spores are 6.5–7.5 x 5–5.5 µm, subglobose and strongly warted. Where it occurs it often appears in small troops scattered over the mossy soil. The fruitbodies may occasionally be caespitose. Species with which it might be confused include C. spilomeus (also in section Anomali) and C. rubicundulus, treated in subgenus Phlegmacium by Jeppsen et al. (2012) in Funga Nordica but possibly closer to subgenus
T
doi:10.1016/j.fldmyc.2015.09.003
111
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Cortinarius (Stensrud et al., 2014). C. spilomeus (Fig. 2) is an uncommon to rare species in Britain, differing from C. bolaris in having the bright, cinnabar-red veil confined to the stem, the cap being a fairly uniform greyish brown to reddish brown or ochre. Usually found with conifers, a recent British collection from
Llanymynech Rocks quarry, which straddles the border of England and Wales, was unusual in occurring with Helianthemum. C. rubicundulus as stated already, doesn’t sit well in subgenus Phlegmacium, lacking the bulbous stem and viscid cap so obvious in many of the species. It does however show strong yellow staining when bruised which might be confused with the similar staining of C. bolaris. Its cap and stem however are much duller in colour. It grows with Fagus and the collection illustrated was found in Scotland. C. bolaris is reputedly poisonous, indeed a surprising number of Cortinarius species are now known to be toxic, some being well known as the cause of fatal poisoning when eaten.
References
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110
Knudsen, H. & Vesterholt, J. Eds. (2012). Funga Nordica Vol. 2. Nordsvamp. Stensrud, Ø., Orr, R.J.S., Reier-Røberg, K., Schumacher, T. & Høiland, K. (2014). Phylogenetic relationships in Cortinarius with focus on North European species. Karstenia 54: 57–71.
Fungal Portraits No. 64: Cortinarius bolaris Geoffrey Kibby
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he genus Cortinarius is generally a very difficult one, with a large number of very similar species, but there are a few which stand out by their striking features that make them easy to identify. Cortinarius bolaris (Pers.:Fr.)Fr. (Fig. 1) is one such species. Like all Cortinarius species it is mycorrhizal, being associated with Fagus, Quercus and Betula and appears to be frequent and widespread in Britain. It belongs in the subgenus Telamonia sect. Anomali which was originally set up by Konrad & Maublanc to cover just the closely related group of species around C. anomalus, characterised by an often coloured universal veil and subglobose spores. The veil in C. bolaris forms scattered brownish red to cinnabar red scales spread over both the cap and the stem. The cap and stem surface are dry to the touch. The entire fruitbody
becomes increasingly bright cinnabar-red with age. When handled or bruised the surface changes to a bright yellow, as does the cut flesh. The cap can reach 3–7 cm in diameter and the stem 3–8 x 0.5–1 cm, the stem being cylindric to broadly clavate or even slightly tapered. The odour is faint and mushroomy but the taste is said to be peppery. The gills begin pale ochre but soon mature to a bright rust-brown as the spores develop. The spores are 6.5–7.5 x 5–5.5 µm, subglobose and strongly warted. Where it occurs it often appears in small troops scattered over the mossy soil. The fruitbodies may occasionally be caespitose. Species with which it might be confused include C. spilomeus (also in section Anomali) and C. rubicundulus, treated in subgenus Phlegmacium by Jeppsen et al. (2012) in Funga Nordica but possibly closer to subgenus
T
doi:10.1016/j.fldmyc.2015.09.003
111
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Cortinarius (Stensrud et al., 2014). C. spilomeus (Fig. 2) is an uncommon to rare species in Britain, differing from C. bolaris in having the bright, cinnabar-red veil confined to the stem, the cap being a fairly uniform greyish brown to reddish brown or ochre. Usually found with conifers, a recent British collection from
Llanymynech Rocks quarry, which straddles the border of England and Wales, was unusual in occurring with Helianthemum. C. rubicundulus as stated already, doesn’t sit well in subgenus Phlegmacium, lacking the bulbous stem and viscid cap so obvious in many of the species. It does however show strong yellow staining when bruised which might be confused with the similar staining of C. bolaris. Its cap and stem however are much duller in colour. It grows with Fagus and the collection illustrated was found in Scotland. C. bolaris is reputedly poisonous, indeed a surprising number of Cortinarius species are now known to be toxic, some being well known as the cause of fatal poisoning when eaten.
References
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110
Knudsen, H. & Vesterholt, J. Eds. (2012). Funga Nordica Vol. 2. Nordsvamp. Stensrud, Ø., Orr, R.J.S., Reier-Røberg, K., Schumacher, T. & Høiland, K. (2014). Phylogenetic relationships in Cortinarius with focus on North European species. Karstenia 54: 57–71.