Lactarius torminosus
Lactarius torminosus is a large agaric fungus found in North Africa, northern Asia, Europe, and North America. The caps of L. torminous mushrooms are convex with a central depression, and attain a diameter of up to 10 cm. The specific epithet tormino means “tormenting” or “causing colic” in reference to gastrointestinal distress associated with consuming the raw mushroom.
About Lactarius torminosus in brief
Lactarius torminosus is a large agaric fungus found in North Africa, northern Asia, Europe, and North America. It was first described scientifically by Jacob Christian Schäffer in 1774 as an Agaricus, and later transferred to the genus Lactarius in 1821 by Samuel Frederick Gray. The caps of L. torminous mushrooms are convex with a central depression, and attain a diameter of up to 10 cm. A blend of pink and ochre hues, the cap sometimes has concentric zones of alternating lighter and darker shades. When cut or injured, the fruit bodies ooze a bitter white latex that does not change color upon exposure to air. Although it is valued for its peppery flavor and eaten after suitable preparation in Russia and Finland, the species is highly irritating to the digestive system when eaten raw. The toxins responsible for the strongly bitter or acrid taste, are destroyed by cooking. The specific epithet tormino means “tormenting” or “causing colic” in reference to the gastrointestinal distress associated with consuming the raw mushroom. A variety, L. tormaninosus var. nordmanensis, is known from the United States, Canada, and Switzerland. L. tormosus officially became the type species of Lactius in 2011 after molecular studies prompted the taxonomic reshuffling of species between several Russulaceae genera. A mycorrhizal species, it associates with various trees, most commonly birch, and its fruit bodies grow on the ground singly or in groups in mixed forests.
The cylindrical stem is a pale flesh color with a delicately downy surface and brittle flesh; it is up to 8 cm long and 0. 6–2 cm thick. The latex that changes from white to yellow in L. lactarius is characterized by having latex thatdoes not turn yellow after exposure to the air, and does not stain the surface of the mushroom surface after cut or cut. It can be distinguished from similar species by differences in morphology and coloration, or by microscopic characteristics like spore shape and size. More recent names include “pink-fringed milkcap” and ” pepper agbearded milkcap”, and the British Mycological Society-recommended “woolly milkcap” name is “powderpuff-puffered milkcap”. A phylogenetic analysis of European species in 2004 concluded that the species belongs to subgenites section Piperites, Piperites, Piperites and Lactifluus, and that it is not the species to be classified as “woolly” in this section of the genus. It is a common and widely distributed species, and can be found in Europe, North America, and northern Africa. The species is also found in northern Asia and northern Europe. It has been known to cause colic in some areas of the world.
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This page is based on the article Lactarius torminosus published in Wikipedia (as of Oct. 29, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
