Tapinella atrotomentosa old name (Paxillus atrotomentosus)

Above is one mushroom that I have cut in half.

I had no idea what these were but Usenet came to the rescue.

This is a large mushroom I found growing in masses on a rotten conifer stump in Western Washington. The spore print is brown. The stem is lateral and has a velvety coating. The flesh is thick and white but maybe has some violet tints. Caps were up to 10 inches across.


"Velvet Rollrim - Paxillus atrotomentosus (=Tapinella atrotomentosa).

This was a tricky one for me because my key just kept sending me to the Cort family. At one point it sent me to the Pholiota family. I actually thought of looking in the Paxillus family but did not.

This is the second time I have found a Paxillus. Last fall I found some Paxillus involutus growing in a lawn with some Leccinum scabrum (Birch Boletes) but they were orange and not growing on wood and I was able to key them out very quickly.