It was a bright, ‘fluorescent’
yellow.
When I touched its
stem, my fingers were covered with a yellow chalky substance. This bolete is covered with a bright yellow partial veil material when young; none remained on the cap of
this specimen but it persisted on the stem.
The pore surface on
young specimens was a bright yellow and bruised blue when damaged. The blue
bruising observed with many boletes results when cells are damaged and a
compound called boletol present in the cells is exposed to oxygen (oxidized)
producing a color change from colorless to blue. (Interestingly, remnants of
the veil are also visible at the margin of this cap.)
The pores on this
bolete are relatively large - 2-3 pores/millimeter – round or angular in shape,
and somewhat translucent in appearance.
In late September,
I spotted a bolete with a duller yellow cap that had patches of orange. I
thought it was a different species of bolete but, again when I touched it…
the yellow, chalky
material, clearly visible in this photo, came off on my fingers. Immediately, I
knew I had found an old specimen of Ravenel’s bolete.
The pore surface of
this older specimen was a dark olive-gray that still bruised blue when damaged.
During the period
between late August and late September, I found Pulveroboletus
ravenelii at three different locations along the trail between the beach and the
fishing area. The combination of the bright yellow color and the presence of
the yellow, chalky material were key characteristics in identifying this
species.
Pulveroboletus ravenelii is found in North and Central America, as well as in some Asian countries and Australia.
Pulveroboletus ravenelii is found in North and Central America, as well as in some Asian countries and Australia.
Related Post
References:
Mushroom Expert: Pulveroboletus
ravenelii
