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Scarlet cobweb (Cortinarius purpurascens) is a large agaric fungus belonging to the vast family and genus Cobwebs. The genus was first classified at the beginning of the XNUMXth century by E. Fries. In the middle of the XNUMXth century, changes were made to the adopted system by Moser and Singer, and this classification is relevant to this day. Mushrooms of the genus Webinnikov love damp, marshy lowlands, which is why they received the popular nickname “bog”.
What does a crimson cobweb look like
The crimson cobweb is very attractive in appearance. The identity of young specimens can be easily determined by the presence of a veil tightly covering the plates. But old mushrooms can only be distinguished by a very experienced mushroom picker or specialist mycologist.
Like other mushrooms of the family, the crimson cobweb got its name because of the peculiar bedspread. It is not membranous, as in other fruiting bodies, but veil-like, as if woven by spiders, connecting the edges of the cap with the base of the stem.
Cap Description
The crimson cobweb has a fleshy, even hat. In young fruiting bodies, it is conical-spherical, with a rounded apex. Growing up, the hat straightens, breaking the threads of the bedspread. It becomes at first spherical, and then prostrate, like an umbrella, with edges slightly twisting inward. The diameter is from 3 to 13 cm. Especially large specimens can reach 17 cm.
The color palette is very extensive: silver-brown, olive-gray, reddish, light brown, walnut-spotted, rich burgundy. The top, as a rule, is a little darker, the color is uneven, with spots and stripes. The surface is slimy, shiny, slightly sticky, especially after rain. The pulp is strongly fibrous, rubbery. It has a bluish-gray tint.
The plates are neat, adherent to the leg. They are often located, even, without notches. Initially they have a silvery-purple or light purple hue, gradually darkening to a reddish-brown or brownish color. Spores are almond-shaped, warty, rusty-brown.
Description of the leg
The crimson cobweb has a fleshy, strong leg. In a young fungus, it is thickened-barrel-shaped, stretches as it grows, acquiring even cylindrical outlines with a thickening at the root. The surface is smooth, with barely visible longitudinal fibers. The color can be varied: from rich lilac and purple, to silver-violet and light reddish. Fluffy reddish-rusty remains of the bedspread are clearly visible. There is also a white velvety coating.
The consistency of the cobweb is dense, fibrous. The diameter of the stem is from 1,5 to 3 cm, and the length is from 4 to 15 cm.
Where and how to grow
The crimson cobweb grows in small groups, 2-4 closely spaced specimens, singly. It is not common, but is found throughout the temperate climate zone. In Our Country, the territory of its habitat is vast – from Kamchatka to the western border, excluding the permafrost zone, and to the southern regions. It also climbs into the territory of neighboring Mongolia and Kazakhstan. Quite often found in Europe: Switzerland, Czech Republic, Germany, Great Britain, Austria, Denmark, Finland, Romania, Poland, Czechoslovakia. It can be seen across the ocean, in the northern United States and in Canada.
The mushroom picker begins to bear fruit in the fall, from the twentieth of August to early October. The crimson cobweb loves damp places – swamps, ravines, beams. It is not demanding on the composition of the soil, it grows both in purely coniferous or deciduous, and in mixed forests.
Is the mushroom edible or not?
Crimson cobweb belongs to the category of inedible mushrooms. There are no exact data on poisonous or toxic substances in its composition, no cases of poisoning have been registered. The pulp has a sweetish-mushroom smell, fibrous and completely tasteless. Due to the low taste and specific consistency, the fruiting body has no nutritional value.
Twins and their differences
The crimson cobweb is very similar to some representatives of its own species, as well as varieties of entol. Due to the similarity of external signs with deadly poisonous counterparts, it is not recommended to collect and eat cobwebs. Often, even experienced mushroom pickers are not able to accurately identify the species of the found specimen.
Cobweb watery blue. Edible. It is distinguished by a rich bluish-ocher shade of the cap and a lighter, heavily pubescent leg. The pulp has an unpleasant odor.
Thick-fleshy cobweb (Fatty). Edible. The main difference is the gray-yellowish color of the legs and grayish flesh, which does not change color when pressed.
Cobweb white-purple. Inedible. It differs in the shape of the cap with a distinct outgrowth in the center, smaller size and longer stem. It has a delicate silver-lilac hue over the entire surface. Plates are dirty brown.
Cobweb anomalous. Inedible. The color of the cap is grayish-brown, turning red with age. The leg is light gray or reddish-sand, with distinct remains of the bedspread.
Cobweb camphor. Inedible. It has an extremely unpleasant smell, reminiscent of rotten potatoes. Color – soft purple, smooth. Plates are dirty brown.
Goat web (traganus, smelly). Inedible, toxic. The color of the cap and legs is pale purple with a silvery tint. It is distinguished by the rusty color of the plates in an adult fungus and a rich unpleasant odor, which is aggravated by heat treatment.
Ringed cap. Edible, has excellent taste. It is distinguished by a light leg and white-cream plates. The pulp does not change color when pressed.
Entoloma poisonous. Deadly dangerous. The main difference is cream-gray plates and a gray-brown leg. The hat can be bluish, light gray or brown. The pulp is white, dense, with an unpleasant, rancid-mealy smell.
Entoloma brightly colored. Non-toxic, considered a conditionally edible mushroom. It is not recommended to collect it, since it is easy to confuse it with similar poisonous species. It is distinguished by a bluish color over the entire surface, the same pulp and smaller sizes – 2-4 cm.
Conclusion
The crimson cobweb is a representative of the vast family of cobwebs, it is quite rare. Its habitat is Western and Eastern Europe, North America, Our Country, the Middle and Far East. Likes wet areas of deciduous and coniferous forests, where it grows singly or in small groups. Due to low nutritional qualities, it is classified as inedible mushrooms. It has poisonous counterparts, so it should be treated with caution. Crimson cobwebs can be distinguished from similar twins due to the property of the pulp to change its color from gray-blue to purple when pressed or cut.
