Lactarius pallescens

Lactarius pallescens
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Basidiomycota
Class: Agaricomycetes
Order: Russulales
Family: Russulaceae
Genus: Lactarius
Species:
L. pallescens
Binomial name
Lactarius pallescens
Hesler & A.H. Sm. (1979)
Lactarius pallescens
Gills on hymenium
Cap is flat or depressed
Hymenium is subdecurrent
Stipe is bare
Spore print is white
Ecology is mycorrhizal
Edibility is unknown

Lactarius pallescens is a Western North American "milk-cap" mushroom, of which the milk turns violet when the flesh is damaged. The fungi generally identified as L. pallescens are part of a complex of closely related species and varieties which have a peppery taste and are difficult to delimit definitively.[1]

The gray-brown cap ranges from 3 to 10 cm in width, with a mucilaginous surface,[2] whitish flesh and white latex. The gills are whitish and sometimes slightly decurrent.[2] The viscid stalk ranges from 3 to 8 cm long and 1 to 2 cm wide. The spores are pale yellow to orange, elliptical, and bumpy. The flesh of the mushroom stains lilac.[3] In age, reddish stains develop.[2]

Distribution

Lactarius pallescens is found on the West Coast of the United States. In the Pacific Northwest, it can be found in conifer forests.[2]

Lactarius uvidus (a close relative)[3][2] and Lactarius californiensis are similar.

See also

References

  1. ^ Wood, Miichael (2013 January). Lactarius pallescens. On the MykoWeb.com Web site: [1]
  2. ^ a b c d e Trudell, Steve; Ammirati, Joe (2009). Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest. Timber Press Field Guides. Portland, OR: Timber Press. p. 58. ISBN 978-0-88192-935-5.
  3. ^ a b Davis, R. Michael; Sommer, Robert; Menge, John A. (2012). Field Guide to Mushrooms of Western North America. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 95. ISBN 978-0-520-95360-4. OCLC 797915861.