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The camphor webcap (Cortinarius camphoratus) is a lamellar mushroom from the Spiderweb family and the Spiderweb genus. First described in 1774 by Jacob Schaeffer, a German botanist, and named amethyst champignon. Its other names:
- champignon pale purple, from 1783, A. Batsh;
- camphor champignon, since 1821;
- goat's webcap, since 1874;
- amethyst spider web, L. Kele.
What does a camphor webcap look like?
A feature of this type of fruiting bodies is a cap that is even, as if carved along a compass. The mushroom grows to a medium-sized size.
Group in a pine forest
Description of the hat
The hat is spherical or umbrella-shaped. In young specimens, it is more rounded, with bent edges pulled together by a veil. In adulthood, it straightens, becoming almost straight, with a gentle elevation in the center. The surface is dry, velvety, covered with longitudinal soft fibers. Diameter from 2.5-4 to 8-12 cm.
The color is uneven, with spots and longitudinal stripes, noticeably changing with age. The center is darker, the edges are lighter. The young camphor webcap has a delicate amethyst, light purple color with pale grayish veins. As it matures, it changes to a lavender, almost white, retaining a darker, brownish-purple spot in the middle of the cap.
The pulp is dense, fleshy, colored with alternating white-lilac layers or lavender. Over-olds have a reddish-buffy tint. The plates of the hymenophore are frequent, of different sizes, toothed-accreted, in the early stages of growth, covered with a spider-like white-gray veil. In young specimens, they have a pale lilac color, which changes to brown-sandy or ocher. The spore powder is brown.
On the edges of the cap and on the leg, reddish-buffy cobweb-like remains of the bedspread are noticeable
Leg description
The camphor webcap has a dense, fleshy, cylindrical leg, slightly widening towards the root, straight or slightly curved. The surface is smooth, velvety-felt, there are longitudinal scales. The color is uneven, lighter than the cap, white-purple or lilac. Covered with a white downy bloom. The length of the leg is from 3-6 cm to 8-15 cm, the diameter is from 1 to 3 cm.
Where and how it grows
The camphor webcap is common throughout the Northern Hemisphere. Habitat - Europe (British Isles, France, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Poland, Belgium) and North America. It is also found in Russia, in the northern taiga regions, in Tatarstan, Tver and Tomsk regions, in the Urals and in Karelia.
The camphor webcap grows in spruce forests and next to fir, in coniferous and mixed forests. Usually the colony is represented by a small group of 3-6 specimens freely scattered over the territory. More numerous formations can be seen occasionally. The mycelium bears fruit from late August to October, remaining in one place for several years.
Is the mushroom edible or not
The camphor webcap is an inedible species. Toxic.
Doubles and their differences
The camphor webcap can be confused with other purple-colored Cortinarius species.
Webcap white-purple... Conditionally edible mushroom of poor quality. The pulp has an unpleasant musty odor. Its color is lighter, and it is inferior in size to camphor.
The characteristic feature is a club-shaped stem
Goat or goat's webcap... Poisonous. It has a pronounced tuberous stem.
This species is also called smelly because of the indescribable aroma.
Silver webcap... Inedible. It is distinguished by a light-colored, almost white, with a bluish tint, a hat.
Inhabits deciduous and mixed forests from August to October
Webcap blue... Inedible. Differs in a bluer shade of color.
This species prefers to settle next to a birch
Conclusion
The camphor webcap is a toxic lamellar fungus with an unpleasant smelling pulp. It lives everywhere in the Northern Hemisphere, in coniferous and mixed forests, forming mycorrhiza with spruce and fir. It grows from September to October. Has inedible counterparts from the blue Webcaps. You cannot eat it.
