Leccinum discolor A.H. Sm., Thiers, and Watling
no common name
Boletaceae
Species account author: Ian Gibson.
Extracted from Matchmaker: Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest.
Introduction to the Macrofungi
no common name
Boletaceae
Species account author: Ian Gibson.
Extracted from Matchmaker: Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest.
Introduction to the Macrofungi
Species Information
Summary:
Features include 1) a dry to subviscid cap that is orange brown and nearly bald, 2) white flesh that changes to pinkish then blackish, 3) white pores that become pale olive-brown and when bruised stain dark brown, 4) a white stem with conspicuous scabers that turn from whitish to dark brown or black, 5) growth under pine and aspen, and 6) microscopic characters including the absence of orange-brown pigment globules in the cap cuticle hyphae. Leccinum discolor is one of the species previously identified as L. aurantiacum (Theirs(13)).
Odor:
mild (Thiers(1))
Taste:
mild (Thiers(1))
Microscopic:
spores 15-20 x 4.5-6.5 microns, fusoid [spindle-shaped] to subcylindric [nearly cylindric], smooth, some producing a dextrinoid reaction, ochraceous; cap cuticle hyphae lacking orange-brown pigment globules when revived in Melzer''s reagent, (Bessette), spores 15.5-20 x 4.5-6.5 microns, fusoid to subcylindric, smooth, ochraceous in KOH and Melzer''s reagent, some showing a dextrinoid reaction, thin-walled; basidia 4-spored, 30-37 x 9-12 microns, clavate to pear-shaped, colorless and with granular contents in KOH; hymenial cystidia 30-46 x 8-15 microns, "fusoid to clavate with elongated, tapering apices", colorless to sometimes appearing filled with dark brown amorphous material in KOH, thin-walled; cap cuticle a tangled trichodermium of free hyphal tips, buff in KOH, ochraceous tawny in Melzer''s reagent, "hyphae 8-10 microns wide, walls smooth to asperulate and sometimes appearing incrusted, considerable disarticulation of cells noted, terminal cells only slightly narrowed at apex"; caulocystidia 25-45 x 10-17 microns, "clavate to mucronate to subfusoid", mostly dark brown in KOH but some colorless cells present, "an occasional large cell interspersed", walls smooth, thin; clamp connections absent, (Thiers(1))
Spore Deposit:
brown (Bessette, Thiers)
Notes:
It is found from eastern Canada west to ID, MT, WY, CO, and CA, (Bessette). It has been reported from BC (M. Beug, pers. comm.).
EDIBILITY
reported by Theirs(1) as edible, but orange Leccinum species have been implicated in poisoning episodes
Habitat and Range
SIMILAR SPECIES
Leccinum aurantiacum has an abundance of pigment globules formed within the cells of the cap cuticle, whereas in L. discolor the contents remain homogeneous or only become finely granular, (Thiers). Leccinum insigne does not have a reddish phase in the discoloration of the exposed flesh, (Thiers).Habitat
single, scattered or in groups on ground under pine and aspen, (Bessette), single to scattered in soil under aspen (Thiers(13))
Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Discina ancilis (Pers.) Sacc.
Discina perlata (Fr.) Fr.