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põdranapsik (Pluteus cervinus)

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Pluteus cervinus

**is an extremely common mushroom in the midwestern and eastern parts of North America, and can be common elsewhere as well. It can be found fruiting on very rotten logs almost any time of the year -- except when it's too cold or snow is on the ground. It is distinguished by its fawn-colored cap and its pink gills, usually fruiting singly or sometimes in small groups. The cap varies in size from 1 cm to 10 cm across. Pluteus species are wood decay fungi, growing on hardwoods, and they seem to attack logs very late in the course of decay. They can often be found when no other mushrooms are fruiting. Pluteus cervinus is an edible mushroom, but it is not highly prized by most mycophagists (mushroom eaters). It's the kind of mushroom that, when you return from a day of mushroom hunting and people ask what you found, you say-- "oh, just some Pluteus. unnnnh... " But it's not really *that* bad-- I know at least one person for whom this is a favorite! There's no accounting for taste.

The other common pink-spored Basidiomycota that grows on wood are member of the genus Volvariella shown here to the right. , but members of that genus have a distinct volva, or cup, at the base of the stipe. Pluteus species have no such volva. The volva is the remnant of the universal veil that covers the entire fruiting body when it's in the primordial stage, and can also be found in Amanita species. However Amanita species have a white spore print, are mycorrhizal, and are found on the ground fruiting from the roots of trees; most Amanita species also have an annulus, a ring around the stalk that is the remnant of the partial veil. I don't recommend you eat Volvariella species unless you are very very sure of your identification.

Another large group of pink-spored mushrooms are Entoloma species. These are mostly saprophytic fungi that grow on the ground. Their spores are also very warty or angular. distinguishing them from the smooth spores of Pluteus. You must also be very careful about eating Entoloma species, since many of them are poisonous.

So why is the common name of Pluteus cervinus the "deer mushroom?" Well some people claim that the name comes from the deer colored top of the cap. But those of us who have access to microscopes know better. The name comes from the spectacular cystidia that are found on the hymenium, on the surface of the gills of the mushroom. They stick out well past the basidia and have projections on the end, like the antlers of a deer. The spores are not attached to the cystidia, but rather to the smaller basidia.

So, here's an example of a mushroom that is somewhat "underwhelming" in appearance when you find it in the woods, but once you bring it back to the microscope and start to take a closer look, you can see something that's really interesting and even beautiful. You don't need any high power microscopes to see these cystidia. The microscopic characters are often a key to identification, and once you start looking at them you'll be hooked!

If you have anything to add, or if you have corrections or comments, please write to me at volk.thom@uwlax.edu

The deer mushroom is widely distributed and common in North America. It is fairly easily recognized by its growth on wood, its free gills that begin whitish but soon become pink, its brownish cap, and its medium size. It is not picky about what kind of wood it grows on--nor is it very picky about when it will fruit, appearing from spring to fall and even in winter in warmer climates.Though it is an edible mushroom and frequently tempts mushroom hunters since it is so common, it isn't very thrilling when cooked up, in my experience. David Arora (1986) makes a good suggestion when he cautions people thinking of eating the deer mushroom to eat only those specimens they find actually growing from wood; several poisonous terrestrial Entoloma species could be confused with the deer mushroom when it is growing from buried wood and appearing terrestrial.The deer mushroom's common name is a rough translation of its Latin species name, cervinus. However, the reference is not to its brown colors or woodland habitat, nor a suggestion that it is a favored munchy for Bambi; instead, it is a recognition that the mushroom has antlers! Okay, so you need a microscope to see them--but the cystidia (special cells on the gills) are "horned," with two or more projections at the tip (see the illustration). Observing this feature is probably not required to identify the mushroom successfully, but it is required if you want to brag about how many "points" were on the "buck" you bagged.Description:Ecology: Saprobic on the wood of hardwoods and conifers; growing alone, scattered, or gregariously; spring through fall; common and widely distributed in North America.Cap: 3-15 cm; convex becoming broadly convex to flat; pale to dark brown; smooth and glossy to streaked with fibers; slightly sticky when wet.Gills: Free from the stem; white, soon becoming pink and finally deep flesh color; crowded or close.Stem: 5-13 cm long; .5-2.5 cm thick; more or less equal; sometimes enlarging slightly to base; white; sometimes streaked with brownish fibers.Flesh: Soft and white throughout.

Taste: Mild or, more frequently, radishlike; odor not distinctive or radishlike.Spore Print: Pink to pinkish brown.Microscopic Features: Spores 5-8 x 4-6 µ; elliptical; smooth. Cystidia with thick walls and apical projections ("horns").Pluteus atricapillus is a synonym.**