Slippery Jack

Description:

The cap is brown and up to 12 cm in diameter at maturity.[1] The cap is initially hemispherical, later flattening out. It is slimy to the touch, bare, smooth, and glossy even when dry and the cuticle is easily peeled off. The tiny, circular pores of the tubes are at first light yellow but turn olive to dark yellow with maturity. The attachment to the stem is adnate. The stem attains a height of up to 10 cm and a width 3 cm. It is pale yellow and more or less cylindrical but may bear a swollen base. A white partial veil extends from the stem to the cap margin in immature specimens. At maturity the veil detaches from the cap and its remnant forms a ring around the stem. The underside of the ring is characteristically dark brown to violet. This species is one of the few members of the genus Suillus that sport such a ring. The white flesh of the entire fungus does not discolour when damaged, and it is soft particularly in mature specimens. It is frequently infested with larvae

Habitat:

Suillus luteus can be found all over the northern hemisphere. It is found in coastal and montane pine forests and exhibits a tolerance of the northern latitudes. It is especially common in pine plantations and young pine forests. Suillus luteus forms mycorrhizal associations with various species of pine, which include Pinus sylvestris, Pinus nigra, and Pinus peuce in Europe,[2][3] and Pinus resinosa and Pinus strobus in North America.[4] It does not require a specific soil but seems to prefer acidic and nutrient-deficient soil. The fungus fruits in spring, summer and fairly prolifically in autumn, following periods of wet weather. It has also been found under pine trees in introduced pine plantations in Australia, particularly in the Blue Mountains and Southern Highlands, as well as New Zealand and Argentinean Patagonia. There it can be picked around Easter.

Notes:

Spotted in the S.Joâo Hospital gardens,a place where i never imagined that could sustein such a amazing variety of fungis and trees,beautiful in this season