Species details
Goldleaf shield
Pluteus romellii
Traditionally edible
Photo: Alan Rockefeller · CC BY 4.0 · Photo source · License
Description
A small yellow-brown shield mushroom with a distinctly yellow stem, growing on decaying hardwood.
Identification features
Cap about 1–5 cm wide, yellow to soot-brown, finely velvety and often darker centrally. Gills are free, whitish to yellowish at first, later pink. Stem is lemon-yellow and slender.
Identification checklist
Check the combination of a yellow-brown cap, free gills and a distinctly yellow stem on hardwood.
How to separate similar species
Small shield mushrooms can look similar; microscopic characters matter in atypical specimens.
Habitat
Grows on dead hardwood, especially beech and maple, in summer and autumn.
Fruiting period
August, September, October