Waxycap Mushroom Hygrocybe Miniata ILLINOIS RANGE

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waxycap mushroom Hygrocybe miniata Kingdom: Fungi FEATURES Phylum: Basidiomycota The body of a fungus (mycelium) is made up of Class: Agaricomycetes strands called mycelia. The mycelium grows within Order: Agaricales the soil, a dead tree or other object and is rarely seen. The fruiting body that produces spores is Family: Hygrophoraceae generally present for only a short period of time but ILLINOIS STATUS is the most familiar part of the fungus to people. This waxycap mushroom may also be known as the common, native vermilion waxycap. Its cap is rounded and may have © James Veselenak a slight indentation at the center or may be ﬂat. The cap is orange-red when wet but dries to orange or yellow. The waxy gills may be red, orange or yellow. The thin stalk is filled with cottonlike filaments. The stalk is the same color as the cap. The cap is about three-fourths to one and three-fourths inches wide, while the stalk is about one and one-fourth to two inches tall.

BEHAVIORS This waxycap mushroom may be found statewide in Illinois. It grows in soil, forest debris or decaying wood in woodlands. These mushrooms may appear singly or in small groups. Unlike plants, fungi do not have roots, stems, leaves, ﬂowers or seeds. The representative specimen waxycap mushroom must absorb nutrients and water from the objects it grows in. Spores are produced from summer through fall. The spores ILLINOIS RANGE provide a means of reproduction, dispersal and survival in poor conditions. Spore production occurs when conditions are favorable, generally with warm temperatures and ample moisture.

Woodland Habitats bottomland forests; coniferous forests; upland deciduous forests

Prairie and Edge Habitats none