About this fungus
Herald Of Winter is a fungus in the Hygrophoraceae family. Its habitat and field characteristics are summarised below.
A late-season pine woodwax with a slimy olive-brown cap, yellowish gills and stem, often appearing after the first frosts.
What to check
Look for a viscid olive to brown cap, thick pale yellow gills that become more clearly decurrent with age, and a yellow stem with a slimy lower portion. Young mushrooms may show a fleeting veil and later a ring-like zone, but no durable ring or volva.
Variation
The cap ranges from dark olive-brown to yellow-brown and may fade at the margin. Gills begin almost white, become pale yellow and can turn duller with age.
Lookalikes
Other brown or yellow Hygrophorus species can be similar. The combination of pine, a slimy cap and lower stem, yellowing gills, and very late fruiting is more useful than any single feature.
Habitat and range
Mycorrhizal with pine, on soil and needle litter in woodland and at open edges. It fruits late in autumn or winter, although timing varies with climate and elevation.
Food safety
Edible.
Use this profile to learn what to examine and compare, not as proof that a mushroom is safe to eat. Check the whole specimen and every important lookalike before reaching an identification.