Tylopilus felleus (“Bitter Bolete”)

White cap flesh tastes bitter, & rarely stains pink. Oft-bulbous, brown stem has dark brown netting & may stain olive-brown. White pores age pinkish.

SKU: Tylopilus felleus Categories: 1. Cap Tastes Bitter, Acrid, Astringent, or Peppery, 1. Found in Alabama, 1. Found in Connecticut, 1. Found in Northern Illinois, 2. Found in Kansas, 2. Found in New Jersey, 3. Found in Louisiana, 3. Found in Michigan, 3. Found on Long Island (New York), 4. Found in Ohio, 4. Found in Pennsylvania, 4a. Found in S.W. Pennsylvania, 5. Found in North Carolina, 5. Found in Ontario, 5. Found in W. Va. or the Central Appalachians, 6. Found in Eastern Texas, 6. Found in Quebec, CAP COLOR FILTERS, CAP FLESH COLOR FILTERS, Cap Flesh Does Not Stain with 30 seconds, Cap Flesh is White, CAP FLESH STAINING FILTERS, Cap Flesh Stains a Color Other than Blue, CAP SIZE FILTERS, CAP TASTE FILTERS, CAP TEXTURE FILTERS, Cap Texture is: 1- Dry & Smooth (Normal), Cap Texture is: 2- Viscid, Sticky, Slimy or Slick, Coniferous ("Needle-y") Trees, Deciduous (Leafy) Trees, Edibility: 2-Bitter, FILTER SET #1: REGION, FILTER SET #2: CAP FEATURES, FILTER SET #3: PORE FEATURES, FILTER SET #4: STEM FEATURES, FILTER SET #5: CAP FLESH (CONTEXT) FEATURES, FILTER SET #6: SPORE PRINT, FILTER SET #7: HABITAT FILTERS, FILTER SET #8: EDIBILITY, My Mushroom is Mature & Its Pores are Tiny, My Mushroom's Cap is >0.1" Across, My Mushroom's Cap is >4” Across, My Mushroom's Cap is >6” Across, My Mushroom's Cap is >8” Across, PORE COLOR FILTERS, PORE SIZE FILTERS, PORE STAINING FILTERS, Pores Do Not Stain within 30 seconds, Primary Cap Color is: 2- Yellow to Orange, Primary Cap Color is: 3- Red, Pink, Purple, or Orange, Primary Cap Color is: 4- Some Shade of Brown, Primary Pore Color is: 1- White, Buff, or Light Gray, Primary Pore Color is: 3 - Red, Pink, Purple or Orange, Primary Stem Color is: 1- White, Buff, or Light Gray, Primary Stem Color is: 2- Yellow to Orange, Primary Stem Color is: 3- Red, Pink, Purple, or Orange, Primary Stem Color is: 4- Some Shade of Brown, Spore Print is 3- Pink-, Red-, Purple-, or Cinnamon-Brown, Spore Print is 4- Plain Old Brown, STEM COLOR FILTERS, STEM DECORATION/ TEXTURE FILTERS, Stem Is Bulbous, STEM SIZE FILTERS, Stem: 5- Is Netted (Reticulated), Stem: Netting is WHITE, ZONE 1- the NORTHEAST, ZONE 2- the MIDWEST, ZONE 5 - the SOUTH

Description
Discussions(1)

Description

Genus: Tylopilus

Species: felleus

Common Name: “Bitter Bolete”

Common Name 2: “The Great Betrayer” [said in rueful, not-quite jest]

Tells: White cap flesh tastes bitter, & rarely stains pink. Oft-bulbous, brown stem has dark brown netting & may stain olive-brown. White pores age pinkish.

Other Information: A much hated mushroom and the bane of visiting Europeans, because it is both common and easy to confuse with B. edulis. NOTE: Your author has personally found [very] young specimens where the netting was white so please do not rely on netting color alone to distinguish from the choice lookalikes.

Edibility: Too bitter to eat but useful for unique approaches like cocktail bitters. It isn’t toxic; just absurdly bitter.

Science Notes: This is one of the few species that thrives in both Europe and North America, though it is much rarer in the old country. NOTE: It has been removed from the Florida regional filter in favor of T. rhoadsiae.

CHEMICAL TESTS:

NH4OH (Ammonia): Cap skin turns amber-orange to reddish-orange. Cap flesh turns pale yellow surrounded by a pale blue zone.
KOH: Cap skin turns amber-orange to reddish-orange. Cap flesh turns pale greenish yellow.
FeSO4 (Iron Salts): Cap skin turns dull olive. Cap flesh turns gray-green.

Links:

National Audubon Society Field guide to Mushrooms, Gary Lincoff

593

Mushrooms of West Virginia and the Central Appalachians

310

North American Boletes

263

BENA

375

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Alex F

4 years 1 month ago

Found this bolete in the Burgaw and Wilmington N.C. area. It is super bitter

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