Loch Garten Foray

I had a wonderful hour nosing round the pine woods NW of Loch Garten near Aviemore yesterday. It's a long way from my usual haunts and the extensive woodland was supporting large populations of many new and unfamiliar fungi.

Cortinarius violaceus

Cortinarius armillatus

Leccinum cyaneobasileucum

Chroogomphus rutilus

Tapinella atrotomentosa

...and a few old favourites.

The miller - Clitopilus prunulus

Wooly milkcap - Lactarius torminosus

Orange birch bolette - Leccinum versipelle

Fly agaric - Amanita muscaria

Cortinarius bolaris

Cortinarius bolaris

Cortinarius bolaris

Cortinarius bolaris

The Pointiest

Cortinarius acutus - an exceptionally pointy mushroom!

Cortinarius acutus

Cortinarius acutus

Cortinarius evernius

Cortinarius evernius coming up in sizeable clumps all over the Cowal's soggier forest plantations.

Cortinarius evernius

Cortinarius evernius

Cortinarius evernius

Cortinarius alboviolaceus

Monday Mushroom #109

Cortinarius alboviolaceus

Cortinarius alboviolaceus - with some Cantharellus tubaeformis on the side.

Cortinarius

Monday Mushroom # 19

Cortinarius alboviolaceus

There are many, many species of cortinarius and most are very difficult to tell apart - but this one, with its curious, silvery-purple skin is usually quite distinctive.

Some cortinarius mushrooms are deadly poisonous, in fact I suspect that one of the most common types growing around here is Cortinarius rubellus, but I couldn't be sure, as there are so many other reddish-orangeish-brownish cortinarius species in the books.

Cortinarius rubellus?