Wrinkled Peach - Tumblr Posts
Wrinkled Peach - Rhodotus palmatus
This post will discuss the Wrinkled Peach mushroom or Rhodotus palmatus, a beautiful species of fungi that is unfortunately in decline.
Fruitbody
The cap is initially almost globose after which it turns convex with an inrolled margin and eventually almost flattening. When young the cap has a pink colour and when mature the cap's colour turns peach hue. The pellicle, which can be peeled completely, is thick and gelatinous and usually wrinkled in the form of a network of interconnected ridges. When mature the cap's measurements range from 5 to 10 centimeters across. The flesh of the cap is white of colour.¹
The gills are adnate to free, have a pinkish colour and are moderately spaced.¹
The stipe has a whitish tinged with pink colour and is paler than the cap. The stipe of this mushroom is 3 to 7 centimeters long and 1 to 1.5 centimeters in diameter. It does not have an annulus, is covered in whitish fibrils and often bleeds red or orange guttules. Because of it being a saprobic mushroom and therefore growing on tree trunks or branches, the stipes of this species are invariably curved.¹
Spores and microscopic features
The spore print can have a white to pink colour. Microscopically, the spores (bottom left picture) are globose, covered in fine warts, 5-7µm in diameter and inamyloid.¹
The cheilocystidia (bottom right picture) are mostly fusiform or narrowly club-shaped and typically 8 x 40 µm.¹
Ecology and distribution
Rhodotus palmatus is a saprobic mushroom, meaning that it feeds on decaying or dead organic material. It is specifically found on well-rotted hardwood trunks and branches, usually those of fallen elms but also those of other broadleaves.¹ It is most likely to fruit during cooler temperatures after long periods of rainy weather.² It can be found growing alone, scattered or gregariously.
It has a circumboreal distribution, meaning that it can be found throughout the boreal regions. This species can then also found in North America, Europe, as well as Asia.²
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References
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Images
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Hiyaa @belis86 ! I thought you might find this post interesting:))