- Boletus pulcherrimus
Taxobox
name = Boletus pulcherrimus
image_width = 220px
image_caption = "B. pulcherrimus",
collectedRedwood National Park
regnum =Fungi
divisio =Basidiomycota
classis =Agaricomycetes
ordo =Boletales
familia =Boletaceae
genus = "Boletus "
species = "B. pulcherrimus"
binomial = "Boletus pulcherrimus"
binomial_authority = Thiers & Halling mycomorphbox
name = Boletus pulcherrimus
whichGills = adnate
capShape = convex
hymeniumType=pores
stipeCharacter=bare
ecologicalType=mycorrhizal
sporePrintColor=olive
howEdible=poisonous"Boletus pulcherrimus", commonly known as Alice Eastwood's bolete, is a large imposing red-pored
bolete from Western North America. It was formerly known as "B. eastwoodiae", though the original material was reviewed and found to belong to "B. satanas". To date it is the only bolete that has been implicated in the death of someone consuming it; a couple developed gastrointestinal symptoms in 1994 after eating this fungus with the husband succumbing. Autopsy revealedinfarction of the midgut.cite journal |author=Benjamin DR |title=Red-pored boletes |pages=359–360 in: cite book |title=Mushrooms: poisons and panaceas — a handbook for naturalists, mycologists and physicians |publisher=New York: WH Freeman and Company |year=1995]Taxonomy
The species was described in 1976 by
Harry D. Thiers and Roy E. Halling as "Boletus pulcherrimus", from theLatin "pulcherrimus" ' very pretty'. [cite book|author = Simpson DP| title = Cassell's Latin Dictionary | publisher = Cassell Ltd.| date = 1979|edition = 5|location = London|pages = 883| isbn=0-304-52257-0] The original material collected byAlice Eastwood of theCalifornia Academy of Sciences and sent toWilliam Murrill who described it as "Boletus eastwoodiae" was found on examination to belong to "Boletus satanas". [cite journal|author=Thiers HD, Halling RE|year=1976|title=California Boletes V:Two New Species of Boletus |journal=Mycologia |volume=68|issue=5 |pages=976–83|doi=10.2307/3758713 |url=http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0027-5514%28197609%2F10%2968%3A5%3C976%3ACBVTNS%3E2.0.CO%3B2-7&size=LARGE&origin=JSTOR-enlargePage (abstract)|format=PDF|accessdate= 2008-02-02]Description
Coloured various shades of olive- to reddish-brown, the cap may sometimes reach convert|25|cm|in|0|abbr=on in diameter and is convex in shape before flattening at maturity. The surface may be smooth or velvety when young, but may be scaled in older specimens. The adnate pores are bright red to dark red or red-brown and bruise dark blue or black. In cross section, the tubes and flesh are yellow. The solid , firm stipe is 7-20 cm (3-8 in) long and thicker, up to convert|10|cm|in|0|abbr=on in diameter, at the base before tapering to 2-5 cm (1-2 in) at the top. It is yellow or yellow-brown in colour and bears a network of red reticulations on the upper 2/3rds of its length. The spore print is olive brown and 13-16 x 5-6 μm spores are spindle-shaped or elliptical. The taste of the flesh is reportedly mild.cite book |title=Mushrooms Demystified: A Comprehensive Guide to the Fleshy Fungi|author=Arora D |year=1986 |publisher=Ten Speed Press|location=Berkeley, CA |isbn=0898151694 |pages=p. 528] [cite web| author=Wood M, Stevens F| title =California Fungi:Boletus pulcherrimus|work = The Fungi of California| publisher =Mykoweb|date = 2008| url = http://www.mykoweb.com/CAF/species/Boletus_pulcherrimus.html| accessdate =2008-02-02]
The large and impressive fruiting bodies are distinctive and could only be confused with the pale-capped "
Boletus satanas ". Neither is worth experimenting on eating.Distribution and habitat
"Boletus pulcherrimus" is found in western North America, from
New Mexico andCalifornia toWashington , and may feasibly occur inBritish Columbia . It fruits in autumn in mixed woodlands.cite book |title=Poisonous Mushrooms of the Northern United States and Canada |author=Ammirati JA, Traquair JA, Horgen PA |year=1985|publisher=University of Minnesota Press |location=Minneapolis |isbn=0-8166-1407-5|pages=p. 241-42]Toxicity
Thiers warned this species may be toxic after being alerted to severe gastrointestinal symptoms in one who had merely tasted it.cite book |title=California Mushrooms -- A Field Guide to the Boletes |author=Thiers HD |year=1975 |publisher=Hafner Press |location=New York |isbn=0028534107] Then, a couple developed gastrointestinal symptoms in 1994 after eating this fungus with the husband succumbing. Autopsy revealed
infarction of the midgut. Thus it is the only bolete that has been implicated in the death of someone consuming it.cite journal |author=Benjamin DR |title=Red-pored boletes |pages=359–360 in: cite book |title=Mushrooms: poisons and panaceas — a handbook for naturalists, mycologists and physicians |publisher=New York: WH Freeman and Company |year=1995]References
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