Species details
Jersey cow mushroom
Suillus bovinus
Conditional / expert preparation
Photo: Jerzy Opioła · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Photo source · License
Description
A yellow- to orange-brown bolete with irregular large pores, characteristically associated with pine.
Identification features
The cap is sticky when wet, pores are broad and angular, and there is no ring.
Identification checklist
Check the entire fruitbody for identification. A yellow- to orange-brown bolete with irregular large pores, characteristically associated with pine. The cap is sticky when wet, pores are broad and angular, and there is no ring. Typical habitat: Sandy and acidic soils in pine woodland.
Detailed features
- Cap
- 5–10 cm, hemispherical to nearly flat, yellowish to orange-brown, smooth and sticky when wet.
- Hymenophore
- Yellow to olive-brown tubes; pores become very broad and angular, running slightly down the stem.
- Stem
- 4–8 × 0.5–1.5 cm, cylindrical, flexible, yellow-brown and without a ring.
- Flesh
- Whitish to ochre, soft and flexible; firmer in the stem.
- Smell
- Pleasant, indistinct.
- Spore print
- Olive-brown.
Size
- Cap diameter
- 5–10 cm
- Stem height
- 4–8 cm
- Stem diameter
- 0,5–1,5 cm
Habitat
Sandy and acidic soils in pine woodland.
Fruiting period
July, August, September, October, November
Ecology
- Trophic mode
- Mycorrhizal
- Host trees
- Pine (Pinus)
- Substrate
- Forest soil
- Soil
- Acidic, Sandy
- Notes
- Closely associated with pines, especially on acidic and sandy soils.
How to separate similar species
Compare especially with these similar species: Suillus variegatus, Suillus granulatus. Check the combination of cap shape and colour, spore-bearing surface, stem, flesh changes and habitat. A single feature or photograph is not enough; if the key characters do not match the description, do not treat the identification as confirmed.
Similar species
- Variegated bolete (Suillus variegatus)
Velvet bolete has a drier, granular-scaly cap and finer pores.
- Weeping bolete (Suillus granulatus)
Weeping bolete has finer pores and often milky droplets or granules on the young stem.
Interesting facts
Did you know? The very broad, angular pores are unusual within Suillus and are an important identification feature.