Pluteus cervinus

Pluteus cervinus, also known as Pluteus atricapillus or the Deer mushroom, belongs to the large genus Pluteus. It is found on rotten logs, roots and tree stumps and is widely distributed. It can also grow on sawdust and other wood waste. Being very variable in appearance, it has been divided into several varieties or subspecies, some of which are sometimes considered species in their own right. It is edible, but not often collected for the table (see reference M. Kuo 2004).

Description

 * The species name, cervinus, means that the cap is deer-coloured, but in fact the colour can vary from light ochre-brown to dark brown, with a variable admixture of grey or black. The centre of the cap may be darker.
 * The cap can be up to 15cm in diameter, but is often much smaller. Initially it is bell-shaped, and often wrinkled when young.  Later it expands to a convex shape.
 * The cap surface is smooth and matt to silky-reflective. The cap skin shows dark radial fibres when seen through a lens, indicating that the microscopic cuticle structure is filamentous.
 * The spore powder is salmon-pink. The gills are initially white, but soon show a distinctive pinkish sheen, caused by the ripening spores.
 * The stipe is 5-12cm long and 0.7-2.0cm in diameter, usually thicker at the base. It is covered with brown vertical fibrils on a white ground.
 * The flesh is soft and white. The mushroom has an earthy radish smell and a mild taste at first, which may become slightly bitter.
 * Microscopically it has prominent thick-walled pleurocystidia, covered in crystalline incrustations, with one to three hooks at the top. Spore size: approx. 8×5μ.


 * It grows on dead wood or wood remains.