Buchwaldoboletus lignicola (Kallenb.) Pilát - Wood Bolete

Phylum: Basidiomycota - Class: Agaricomycetes - Order: Boletales - Family: Boletaceae

Distribution - Taxonomic History - Etymology - Identification - Culinary Notes - Reference Sources

Buchwaldoboletus lignicola, the Wood Bolete, stands out from the bolete crowd as something very special; unfortunately it is also quite rare, and so very few people get a chance to become familiar with this attractive woodland mushroom.

Above: Buchwaldoboletus lignicola growing hard against Dyer's Mazegill Phaeolus schweinitzii. It is unclear whether this is a parasitic relationship; it is possible the the wood broken down by Phaeolus schweinitzii simply produces a suitable habitat for the Wood Bolete.

Distribution

Found occasionally in all parts of Britain and Ireland, this distinctive bolete occurs in many other northern and central mainland European countries and in North America.

Taxonomic history

Buchwaldoboletus lignicola was described in scientific literature by the German mycologist Franz Joseph Kallenbach (1893 - 1944) in 1928, at which time it was given the binomial scientific name Boletus lignicola. The currently-accepted scientific name Buchwaldoboletus lignicola dates from a 1969 publication by Czech mycologist Albert Pilát (1903 - 1974).

Synonyms of Buchwaldoboletus lignicola include Boletus lignicola Kallenb., Phlebopus lignicola (Kallenb.) J.W. Groves, and Pulveroboletus lignicola (Kallenb.) E.A. Dick & Snell.

Etymology

The prefix Buchwaldo- literally means 'beech wood'; however, as this species feeds on dead conifer timber it seems hardly appropriate. The name is actually in honour of the Danish mycologist Niels Fabritius Buchwald (1898 - 1986), the extension -boletus coming from the Greek bolos, meaning 'lump of clay'. The specific epithet lignicolus means living on wood.

Identification guide

	Cap Ranging from 5 to 11cm in diameter when fully expanded, the cap of Buchwaldoboletus lignicola is beige or light brown or slightly reddish brown, and the surface is dry and velvety. Young fruitbodies have inrolled margins and rounded and domed caps, but with age they become broadly convex and often develop irregularly scalloped and wavy margins.
	Tubes and Pores The tubes, which are decurrent to the stem, are 3 - 12 mm long; they terminate in elongated-rounded pores that are lemon yellow to bright sulphur yellow, not changing colour when cut or bruised.
	Stem Ranging from 3 to 8cm tall and 0.6 to 2.5cm in diameter, the cylindrical or slightly spindle-shaped stipe of the Wood Bolete is usually yellowish near the apex and slightly darker towards the base. When cut, the flesh may blue slightly or it may not change colour significantly.
	Spores Subfusiform, 6.5-9 x 3-3.5µm. Show larger image Spores of Buchwaldoboletus lignicola, Wood Bolete  X  Spore print Brown.
Odour/taste	A faint odour of oranges; taste not distinctive.
Habitat & Ecological role	This attractive bolete is found on rotting conifer wood, often with the polypore Phaeolus schweinitzii, upon which it may be parasitic..
Season	Midsummer to the end of autumn in Britain and Ireland.
Similar species	No lookalikes commonly occur in Britain and Ireland.

Culinary Notes

Buchwaldoboletus lignicola is not generally known as an edible mushroom, and in any case because of its rarity this mushroom should not be picked for the pot.

Reference Sources

Fascinated by Fungi, 2nd Edition, Pat O'Reilly 2016, reprinted by Coch-y-bonddu Books in 2022.

British Boletes, with keys to species, Geoffrey Kibby (self published) 3rd Edition 2012

Roy Watling & Hills, A.E. 2005. Boletes and their allies (revised and enlarged edition), – in: Henderson, D.M., Orton, P.D. & Watling, R. [eds]. British Fungus Flora. Agarics and boleti. Vol. 1. Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh.

BMS List of English Names for Fungi

Dictionary of the Fungi; Paul M. Kirk, Paul F. Cannon, David W. Minter and J. A. Stalpers; CABI, 2008

Taxonomic history and synonym information on these pages is drawn from many sources but in particular from the British Mycological Society's GB Checklist of Fungi.

Acknowledgement

This page includes pictures kindly contributed by Simon Harding, David Kelly and Brian Niven.

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