Lactarius clarkeae
Lactarius is characterised by the production of latex. It is closely related to Russula but fresh specimens can be identified by the presence of latex.
Lactarius clarkeae has a cap 5—8 cm diam., convex when young, plano-convex or centrally depressed at maturity, dry, coarsely tomentose or villose, azonate, hairs often matted, occasionally aggregated into poorly defined squamules, pallid orange to greyish orange, with pallid greyish overtones imparted by the tomentose surface; margins involute to strongly involute at maturity, entire or occasionally lobed, thick.
Gills are adnate to subdecurrent, subdistant, thick, simple or occasionally forked near stipe, to 5 mm deep, creamy white to pallid cream, often heavily discoloured with brownish spots where latex has dried; lamellulae present in 2-3 unequal series; latex viscid, white, unchanging on immediate exposure to air, drying brown.
Stipe is 2-3-(5) cm long, subequal or tapering basally, 1.5—2 cm diam., solid or slightly hollowed at maturity, dry, velutinate to
tomentose, greyish orange to apricot apically, paling to greyish orange or pallid orange basally, extreme base white or tinted orange; flesh white, firm, unchanging.
Spore are white, broadly elliptical, obliquely apiculate, apiculus to 1.5 /xm long, 8—10.5 X 6-8.5 i±m, ornamentation of amyloid verrucae to 0.6 /xm high, isolated, or a few adjacent verrucae joined by fine amyloid ridges; plage indistinct.
Taste is mild, smell is slightly fishy.
- Lactarius clarkeae. Swains Gardens, Killara, NSW after heavy rain, clay soil, urban landscape and wet sclerophyll, in he
- Lactarius clarkeae, old specimens, under angophera trees, Blackbutt Creek Walk, Killara and Gordon, Sydney Australia, Ma
- Blackbutt Creek Walk, Killara and Gordon, Sydney Australia, March 21, 2008, white cap, depressed center, lots of dirt on
- Unknown, hygrocybe, hygrophorus, Blackbutt Creek Walk, Killara and Gordon, Sydney Australia, March 21, 2008, white cap,
- Lactarius clarkeae, gills upturned probably from age and rain, no discernable smell, in soil, Glenrock Lagoon, Newcastle
