Ornate-stalked Bolete

Welcome back to Mushroom Monday, a weekly look at some of PEI’s beginner-level fungi. Today it’s the distinctive Ornate-stalked Bolete (Retiboletus ornatipes). 

Photo 1: The brownish-yellow cap of the Ornate-stalked Bolete often blends in with the forest floor.

I appreciate a mushroom that’s easy to identify. As a botanist, I’m used to looking at tiny but important features to tell one plant from another, but mushrooms aren’t at all like plants. Their anatomy is completely different and, for some species, even experts need to look at microscopic spores or DNA analysis for positive identification.  Ornate-stalked Bolete is not like that.

From above, this mushroom might not catch your eye (Photo 1). Its drab, brownish-yellow cap doesn’t stand out against the forest floor. But underneath is a different story (Photo 2)!

Photo 2: Under the cap, Ornate-stalked Bolete has yellow pores and netting over the entire stem.

We can see this is a Bolete: a general term used to describe mushrooms that have spongy pores rather than gills, folds, or teeth under their caps. As with many things in nature, there are exceptions. Not all boletes fit that description, and some members of this group have gills while others resemble Puffballs.  Generally speaking, a mushroom with spongy pores is a Bolete, but not all Boletes have spongy pores.

There are hundreds of species of Boletes, and some are easier to identify than others.  Colour of the cap, stem, and pores; colour change when cut or bruised; any marks or patterns on the stem; texture; and smell are among the helpful clues.

Photo 3: The flesh of Ornate-stalked Bolete is yellow and doesn't change colour when cut or bruised (the dark spots here are insect damage).

Ornate-stalked Bolete is also known as Goldstalk; the stem, pores, and flesh of this mushroom are all golden-yellow and don’t change colour when cut (Photo 3). The stem is decorated with a raised, net-like pattern (called reticulation) that extends all or mostly all the way to the base, giving it the Ornate-stalked name (Photo 2).  This reticulation is actually an extension of the pore surface onto the stem. As the mushroom grows, those pores get distorted, much like a piece of woven cloth being stretched.  The presence, colour, and length of reticulation can help identify those Boletes that have it.

Overall, identification of Ornate-stalked Bolete is straightforward: a yellow-pored, yellow-fleshed mushroom that doesn’t change colour and has lots of reticulation on the stem.  This mushroom forms associations with broad-leaved trees, especially Oak and Beech, so look for it in the Island’s hardwood forests.

For me, whether a mushroom is edible or not is one of the least interesting things about it. That said, I do like to taste-test new-to-me species, especially those that have mixed reviews about their taste. Depending on who you ask, Ornate-stalked Bolete is said to be bitter, bland, or choice – that’s quite a range! I collected a couple to try and did not find them at all bitter. They had a mild, mushroomy flavour that I’d rank somewhere between bland and choice, about the middle of the pack among the 21 wild species I’ve tried so far. It’s not a mushroom I’d go out of my way to forage, but I’d definitely collect it again if I happened upon it.  

I’ll be highlighting a new fungus (or group of fungi) each week all fall, as well as continuing my Plant Profiles and Ask a Naturalist series. Follow me here or on Facebook to learn more about these parts of PEI untamed!