Yellow Swamp Brittlegill (Russula Claroflava) – Identification

Yellow Swamp Russula / Summer / Autumn / Edible

Scientific Name

Russula Claroflava

Family

Russulaceae

Habitat

Wet boggy ground in mixed woodland, particularly with birch.

Description

A bright yellow mushroom often shiny on the top that is found in very wet woodland. It is deemed on of the best eating Russula’s with a nutty flavour and a pepper bite simillar to that of rocket. 

Identifying Features for Yellow Swamp Brittlegill:

Cap:

Bright egg yellow and usually shiny. Very sticky to the touch.

Stem:

White and not tapering. Should snap like a piece of chalk.

Gills:

Gills white and is attached to the stem. Crowded. Bruising grey. Brittle to the touch. Adnexed and sometimes free.

Adnexed Gill

Smell:

indistinctive Mushroom smell

Spores:

Ocher to cream

Uses

A good fleshy eating mushroom

In food

Good to eat with a slight peppery heat and nutty flavour.

Harvesting

found from July until November in boggy woodland .

Known hazards

Other Russulas.

Potential lookalikes

Russula ochroleuca, but this is edible, if a bit acrid, and has a duller yellow cap.
The Geranium Scented Russula (R.fellea) is grubbier yellow with a smell of geraniums and is incredibly hot when placed on the tongue.

Follow the four step Russula identification process:

-Snap – Does the stem snap like a piece of chalk?
-Flick – Do the gills break when you flick them gently?
-Peel – Does the skin on the cap peel away?
-Taste–  this should only be done when you have gone through the other steps and are confident that you have a Russula. If a tiny amount placed on the tongue a chilli like burn or tingle means the mushroom is poisonous but a pleasant mushroomy taste means it is edible.