Cortinarius rubripes

[Basidiomycetes > Agaricales > Cortinariaceae > Cortinarius > Telamonia ... ]

by Michael Kuo

The fiery orange base of this hardwood-loving Cortinarius is quite distinctive, separating it from the hordes of dull, boring members of subgenus Telamonia. Like other Telamonias it is "hygrophanous"--the term in Mycologese for a cap that is moist at first, but soon begins to dry out and change color markedly. When young the cap has purple shades that create an appealing contrast to the orange stem base--but by maturity it becomes more or less dingy cinnamon brown.

There may be several color variations of Cortinarius rubripes in North America, and the author of the species (Kauffman) admits it is dangerously close to the European Cortinarius bulliardii (also illustrated to the right)--but my impression, scanning through a few European field guides, is that the Europeans don't have a particularly clear concept of that species, either; illustrated cap colors range from purplish to bright orange.

I do not recommend any Cortinarius for the table.

Description:

Ecology: Mycorrhizal with hardwoods, especially oaks; growing alone, scattered, or gregariously; summer and fall; possibly widely distributed in North America (versions of the species, at any rate, are recorded from eastern North America and from California).

Cap: 4-12 cm; convex, becoming broadly convex, flat, or broadly bell-shaped; moist becoming dry; smooth or silky; purplish cinnamon at first, changing to reddish brown or cinnamon brown as it dries out.

Gills: Attached to the stem; fairly well spaced; pale or pale purplish when young, becoming cinnamon to rusty; covered by a cortina when young.

Stem: 4-9 cm long; .5-1.5 cm thick at the apex; somewhat swollen at the base; dry or moist; smooth or finely silky; pale purplish to brownish, with a fiery orange or bright to brick red base; basal mycelium also brightly colored; sometimes with a rusty ring zone.

Flesh: Pale or dingy brownish.

Odor: Mild.

Spore Print: Rusty brown.

Microscopic Features: Spores 7-9 x 4-5.5 µ; elliptical; roughened.

REFERENCES: Kauffman, 1918. (Kauffman, 1918; Smith, Smith & Weber, 1979; Arora, 1986.) Herb. Kuo 08240205, 08270213.

Cortinarius bulliardii:

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Kuo, M. (2005, January). Cortinarius rubripes. Retrieved from the MushroomExpert.Com Web site: http://www.mushroomexpert.com/cortinarius_rubripes.html