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The scarlet webcap (Cortinarius paleaceus) is a small lamellar mushroom from the Cortinariaceae family and the Cortinaria genus. It was first described in 1801 and received the name of the curvy mushroom. Its other scientific names: winding webcap, given by Christian Persun in 1838 and Cortinarius paleiferus. Previously, all these mushrooms were considered different species, then they were combined into one common one.
Description of the filmy webcap
The fungus does not grow large. Depending on weather conditions, it is able to change its color and pulp density.
Only sprouted fruiting bodies have an attractive appearance.
Description of the hat
The filmy webcap at a young age has a bell-shaped cap, with a noticeably elongated papillary tubercle at the apex. As it develops, the cap straightens out, becoming umbrella-shaped, and then outstretched, with a cone-shaped tubercle in the center. The surface is uniformly colored and has lighter radial stripes. Covered with golden straw or white bristles, velvety, dry. The color is chestnut, dark brown. When dry, it becomes pale fawn. The diameter of the cap is from 0.8 to 3.2 cm.
The plates of the hymenophore are frequent, uneven, free or dentate-enlarged. Color from beige-cream to chestnut and rusty-black-brown. The pulp is thin, fragile, ocher, black-violet, light chocolate or rusty-brown shades, has a light geranium aroma.
In wet weather, the caps become slimy-shiny
Leg description
The stem is dense, firm, longitudinally fibrous. It can be curved, hollow inside, the pulp is rubbery, elastic, rusty-brown in color. The surface is dry, covered with a white-grayish downy. Sizes reach 6-15 cm long and 0.3-0.9 cm in diameter. The color is beige, violet-brown, black-brown.
With respect to the cap, the legs of the fruit bodies can reach significant sizes.
Where and how it grows
The filmy webcap lives in Europe and North America. In Russia, his colonies were seen in the Kedrovaya Pad nature reserve in the Far East. Its distribution area is wide, but it can be found infrequently.
Grows in mixed coniferous-deciduous forests from mid-summer to September. He especially loves birch groves. Prefers wet places, ravines, lowlands, drying up swamps. Often grows in moss. It settles in large groups of separately spaced fruit bodies of different ages.
Is the mushroom edible or not
The crayfish webcap is classified as an inedible species due to its low nutritional value. There are no exact data on the substances contained in it in open sources.
Doubles and their differences
The filmy webcap has similarities with close relatives.
Webcap gray-blue... Conditionally edible.Differs in larger, up to 10 cm, in size and silvery-bluish, beige-ocher color.
The leg has a light color: white, slightly blue with reddish-sun spots
Semi-hairy webcap... Inedible. Differs in large size and light color of the leg.
The legs of these mushrooms are medium in size and quite fleshy.
Conclusion
Filmy webcap is a small rare mushroom from the webcap genus. Found in the Northern Hemisphere everywhere, but not too abundantly. In Russia, it grows in the Far East. Prefers the neighborhood with birches, the outskirts of bogs, feels great in mosses. Inedible, has twins.
