Deer Shield

Pluteus cervinus

On deciduous, rarely coniferous stumps, snags, windfalls. Summer, autumn.

Cap 5-12 (15) cm across, when young conical, later flattened, thin-fleshed, fragile, fibrous, slimy and shiny in damp weather, brown, greyish-brown, yellowish-brown, even blackish-brown. Gills white, later pink, pinkish-rose, pinkish, free. Stem 5-12 (15)x0.5-2 cm, thickening towards the base, greyish, brownish, with greyish-black fibrils. Flesh white, mild in taste, with an unpleasant smell. Characteristic features: cap from yellowish-brown to blackish-brown. Grows singly, less often a few fruiting bodies together. Edible. Common. The Black-edged Shield (P. atromarginatus) is similar, only its fruiting bodies are blacker and the gill edges are dotted black. Grows in the same places.