Species details
Bleeding fairy helmet
Mycena haematopus
Inedible
Photo: Atsushi Nakajima · CC BY 4.0 · Photo source · License
Description
A small reddish-brown bonnet that exudes dark blood-red juice when the stem or cap is damaged.
Identification features
Cap about 0.5–3 cm wide, bell- to helmet-shaped, reddish-brown. The slender reddish-brown stem bleeds dark red juice when broken.
Identification checklist
Key clues are the reddish-brown bonnet on wood and dark blood-red juice when injured.
Detailed features
- Cap
- Cap about 0.5–3 cm wide, bell- to helmet-shaped, reddish-brown.
- Stem
- The slender reddish-brown stem bleeds dark red juice when broken.
Size
- Cap diameter
- 0,5–3 cm
Habitat
Grows in clusters on decaying wood in various woodland types from spring to autumn.
Fruiting period
May, June, July, August, September, October
Ecology
- Substrate
- Dead wood
- Notes
- Grows in clusters on decaying wood in various woodland types from spring to autumn.
How to separate similar species
Mycena crocata has more orange-red juice and often more yellow tones. Mycena inclinata lacks milky juice.
Similar species
- Saffrondrop bonnet (Mycena crocata)
- Clustered bonnet (Mycena inclinata)
- Mycena sanguinolenta