Hygrophorus pustulatus
Description
Hygrophorus pustulatus is a species of Fungi in the family Hygrophoraceae. It is characterized by its grayish-brown cap, white gills that begin to run down the stem, and a whitish stem that is "pustulate" (covered with little brown dots that are reminiscent of the glandular dots found on the stems of many Suillus species). It is associated with conifers - especially with firs - in western North America and the northern regions of central and eastern North America.
Limacium pustulatum (Pers.) P. Kumm., 1871 is a synonym.
Mushroom Identification
Ecology
Mycorrhizal with conifers - particularly with firs, but also reported in association with Engelmann spruce and with redwood; late summer and fall; common from the Rocky Mountains westward, and occasional in north-central and northeastern North America.
Cap
2-4 cm; convex when young, becoming broadly convex or slightly bell-shaped; sticky when fresh; with a slightly streaked appearance from stretched-out fibers beneath the slime; shiny when dried out; brown to gray-brown; lighter towards the margin.
Gills
Beginning to run down the stem; close or nearly distant; white; waxy.
Stem
3-7 cm long; up to 1.5 cm thick; more or less equal; when very fresh and young sheathed with slime over the lower portion, but soon dry; whitish; covered with tiny fibrous points (especially over the upper half) that darken to grayish brown with maturity or when the mushroom is dried.
Flesh
White; unchanging when sliced.
Odor and Taste
Not distinctive.
Spore Print
White.
Microscopic Features
Spores 8-11.5 x 4-5.5 µ; smooth; ellipsoid; hyaline in KOH; inamyloid. Hymenial cystidia absent. Lamellar trama divergent. Pileipellis an ixocutis with clamp connections present.
Photo sources:
Photo 1 - Author: Holger Krisp (CC BY 3.0)
Photo 2 - Author: James Lindsey (CC BY-SA 2.5)
Photo 3 - Author: Jerzy Opioła (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Photo 4 - Author: Jerzy Opioła (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Photo 5 - Author: cbird (CC BY-SA 3.0)