29 August 2010 Surrey. Photograph copyright Leif Goodwin. Cap Laterally attached to the substrate, initially hoof shaped, and densely covered in velvety dark brown scales, expanding with age, becoming smooth with sparse scales, pale brown, to about 7 cm across Gills Radiating from the point of attachment, fairly broad and thick, initially whitish, then buff Stem Absent Flesh Firm, gelatinous beneath the cap surface, whitish Smell Indistinct Taste Indistinct Season Autumn Distribution Rare Habitat On dead wood from deciduous trees, favouring ash Spore Print Cinnamon brown Microscopic Features Spores ellipsoidal, smooth (7-9) x (5-6.5) µm2. Basidia club shaped, 4 spored. Gill edge cystidia irregular, cylindrical to narrowly flask shaped. Cap hairs rough. Edibility Inedible Notes Specimens collected on 8 November 2009 in Surrey are stored at Kew: RBG Kew herbarium accession number K(M)165026. The species needs examination of the cap hairs with a microscope to distinguish it from C. mollis. For a long time many authorities considered this species to be a variant of C. mollis. DNA studies have shown it to be a distinct species, albeit closely related. 
29 August 2010 Surrey. Photograph copyright Leif Goodwin. 
29 August 2010 Surrey. Photograph copyright Leif Goodwin. |