Help with fungi ID please

[Taryn]

I took this photo in November last year in Shorne Woods Country Park, Kent. They were growing in a mixed woodland area and the larger one was about 2" in diameter.
I have tried looking online and found lots that look similar but none with this texture.

[juliohevia]

Difficult to say...but a good guess, could be, Lactarius Pubescens.

Thanks,

Julio

[FungiJohn]

Originally Posted by Taryn

I took this photo in November last year in Shorne Woods Country Park, Kent. They were growing in a mixed woodland area and the larger one was about 2" in diameter.
I have tried looking online and found lots that look similar but none with this texture.

Hi Taryn

It looks like the Woolly Milkcap - Lactarius torminosus to me

John

[Taryn]

Thanks for your help, at least I know it's a Lactarius spp of some sort now. After looking at some images online I can see why it's difficult to work out, they are so similar it could be either of the above. Are there any distinguishing features to tell them apart or is this something that needs a closer examination?

[Monkey Orchid]

Hi, Taryn.

I'm not anything like a fungi expert, but I'd agree with FungiJohn - your photo looks like Woolly Milkcap Lactarius torminosus.

I'm posting a few pics I took of L. torminosus in a deciduous woodland in West Berkshire a couple of years ago:



As a rule of thumb, I believe the 'milk' (lactate) which oozes from the damaged gills or flesh of Lactarius species can be an important identification feature. What colour it is, whether it changes colour after a while, smell and even taste - but N.B. some species are poisonous! Roger Phillips suggests the following 'tasting' method: "Taste a drop of the milk on your tongue, allowing about half a minute before spitting it out. It may be hot, bitter or mild." I must admit I've never tried the taste test... I did have wild fungi poisoning many years ago, and it's not experience I'm keen to repeat. Some Lactarius 'milks' are described variously as smelling of geraniums, fish, coconut, pears, stock cubes and curry! With L. torminosus and L. pubescens both are described as having white milk which tastes hot and acrid, so that may not help overmuch.

In appearance, with L. torminosus the top surface of the cap is marked with indistinct concentric bands or broken rings of a slightly deeper colour than the background colour of the cap, which is a pale pinkish-brown; in L. pubescens these concentric bands are not present. I can't quite tell from your photo what the cap of your specimens look like, but maybe this information will help.

[Taryn]

Thanks Monkey Orchid, I've just been reading the "Help us to help you identify fungi" which I will remember the next time I find any.
This is a pic of the top of another of the same group I found which looks like it has the concentric bands of darker colour you described.

[flaxton]

L. torminosus has a much richer colour and like your specimen is usually pale orange. L pubescens is usually a pale cream.

Mal

[Taryn]

Thanks flaxton, hopefully I will be able to recognise both of them when I see them again now.