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Gills

Sickener

Russula emetica

Also known as Emetic Russula, Vomiting Russula.

SickenerPiotr J / CC BY-SA 3.0

About this fungus

Sickener is listed in the Shroomify field guide as a gills fungus in the Russulaceae family. On damp, acidic, nutrient-poor ground with pine or spruce, often among Sphagnum, woodland moss or needle litter and on wet heath where conifer roots are present.

A note on identification
This profile is a guide rather than a guarantee. If you are considering eating a wild mushroom, check the whole specimen and its possible lookalikes carefully. Do not eat it if you are unsure of the identification.

Photographs

Another view of SickenerDohduhdah / Public Domain
Another view of SickenerJames Lindsey / CC BY-SA 3.0

Species to compare

Names recorded in the Shroomify catalogue as potentially similar:

Beechwood SickenerHintapink Brittlegill

Further reading

Wikipedia · First Nature

The Shroomify Research Project

What the records suggest about Sickener

The project has analysed over a million matched fungal events from Europe and North America alongside weather and habitat data. The patterns may be useful wherever the same fungus occurs, but local climate, trees and soils can change the response. Ground preferences are drawn from British bedrock records and may need local confirmation elsewhere.

Tree associations

Of the tree types tested, Sickener was most often recorded where spruce was present.

Ground and bedrock

This fungus tends to favour acid ground rather than chalk or limestone.

Elevation

Records tended to come from higher ground, about 52 metres above the average elevation of fungal records in the study.

Weather or season?

Recent weather added a smaller but repeatable signal after the normal seasonal pattern had been allowed for.

Weather response

When does this mushroom tend to appear?

The middle line means there was no difference between this species and other fungi recorded in the same area and part of the season. Warmer and cooler always mean warmer or cooler than normal for that place and time of year, not absolute temperature.

Increase linked with more recordsDecrease linked with more recordsNo clear linkThin line shows uncertainty

Soil temperature

Cooler than normal soil 4 to 7 days beforehand was linked with more records.

Warmer than normalNo changeCooler than normalCooler than normal soil 0 to 3 days beforehand was linked with more records of this species.Cooler than normal soil 4 to 7 days beforehand was linked with more records of this species.Cooler than normal soil 8 to 14 days beforehand was linked with more records of this species.Soil temperature 15 to 21 days beforehand did not show a clear link with how often this species was recorded.Soil temperature 22 to 30 days beforehand did not show a clear link with how often this species was recorded.Cooler than normal soil 31 to 60 days beforehand was linked with more records of this species.0-34-78-1415-2122-3031-60Days before the record

Air temperature

Cooler than normal air 8 to 14 days beforehand was linked with more records.

Warmer than normalNo changeCooler than normalAir temperature 0 to 3 days beforehand did not show a clear link with how often this species was recorded.Cooler than normal air 4 to 7 days beforehand was linked with more records of this species.Cooler than normal air 8 to 14 days beforehand was linked with more records of this species.Air temperature 15 to 21 days beforehand did not show a clear link with how often this species was recorded.Air temperature 22 to 30 days beforehand did not show a clear link with how often this species was recorded.Cooler than normal air 31 to 60 days beforehand was linked with more records of this species.0-34-78-1415-2122-3031-60Days before the record

Each point is a separate matched comparison for that weather measure and time window. Clear results must have a meaningful effect, adequate geographic coverage and the same direction in odd and even years. These are associations in field records, not rules or forecasts.

How the Shroomify research works →