Species details
Red-cracking bolete
Xerocomellus chrysenteron
Extra caution required
Photo: Björn S... · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Photo source · License
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Description
A small bolete with a brown cap that often cracks to reveal reddish flesh.
Identification features
The stem is yellow with reddish fibres; yellow pores may blue slightly.
Identification checklist
Check the entire fruitbody for identification. A small bolete with a brown cap that often cracks to reveal reddish flesh. The stem is yellow with reddish fibres; yellow pores may blue slightly. Typical habitat: In deciduous and mixed woodland, parks, and along paths.
Detailed features
- Cap
- 3–8 cm, dry and velvety, brown; often cracks to reveal wine-red tones beneath.
- Hymenophore
- Yellow to olive pores that may blue slightly when bruised.
- Stem
- 5–8 × 0.8–1.5 cm, yellow above and often reddish below.
- Flesh
- Yellowish, reddish under the cap skin; may blue on exposure.
- Smell
- Slightly fruity.
- Spore print
- Olive-brown.
Size
- Cap diameter
- 3–8 cm
- Stem height
- 5–8 cm
- Stem diameter
- 0,8–1,5 cm
Habitat
In deciduous and mixed woodland, parks, and along paths.
Fruiting period
June, July, August, September, October, November
Ecology
- Trophic mode
- Mycorrhizal
- Host trees
- Oak (Quercus), Beech (Fagus), Spruce (Picea)
- Substrate
- Forest soil
- Notes
- Mycorrhizal in deciduous and coniferous woodland.
How to separate similar species
Compare especially with these similar species: Xerocomellus cisalpinus, Xerocomellus pruinatus, Hortiboletus rubellus. 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
- Sepia bolete (Xerocomellus porosporus)
Cap cracks usually do not reveal such a distinctly red layer; spores also differ.
- Matt bolete (Xerocomellus pruinatus)
Cap is usually darker and finely pruinose, with less characteristic cracking.
- Ruby bolete (Hortiboletus rubellus)
Has a distinctly redder cap and often a yellow stem with red fibres.