Blushing Waxcap
Neohygrocybe ovina
Months
Season
Colour
Habitat
Status
How to Identify Blushing Waxcap
| Cap | Dark brown or black, dry in texture |
| Gills | Light brown or light grey, blushing red when cut or bruised. Significantly lighter than the cap surface |
| Stem | Similar in colour to the cap, smooth and dry in texture. Also blushes red when cut or bruised |
| Spores | White |
Where to find them?
Find this fungus in ancient or undisturbed grasslands. This fungus is a rare find!
Waxcap fungi in general can be found in grasslands which have not been fertilised or ploughed recently, and are regularly grazed or mown. Look out for them in any grassy areas – for example grasslands, road verges, churchyards, and playing fields!
Don’t mistake it with
Blackening waxcap (Hygrocybe conica) can also be turn black with age, but its stem does not turn red when cut or bruised.
Things you might not know:
Blushing waxcap is a strong indicator species, meaning that sites with this species present are likely to have a high diversity of grassland fungi.
The photographs on this page have been taken by Steve Hindle.
