Cuphophyllus virgineus
Fast facts
- Common names
- Snowy Waxcap
- Scientific name
- Cuphophyllus virgineus
- When to See It
- September-November
Description
A small to medium waxcap, white to cream in colour, with thick, widely spaced gills that run down the stem. The cap is slightly greasy, while the stem is slender and often tapers towards the base. Snowy Waxcap is variable in appearance and can occur as a creamier form with a darker cap, or as a whiter form with a darker central disc.
Identifying Snowy Waxcap
Snowy Waxcap is a small to medium pure white species, often developing ivory or pale greyish tones with age. The cap begins convex, then flattens and becomes slightly depressed in the centre, sometimes appearing faintly translucent when damp. Gills are thick, widely spaced and run down the stem, often with short cross-veins visible between them. The stem is slender, smooth and white, usually tapering slightly towards the base and often curved. Its clean white colouring and broad, decurrent gills make it one of the easier waxcaps to recognise in the field.
Lookalikes
This species has few close lookalikes. The most similar is the Cedarwood Waxcap Cuphophyllus russocoriaceus, which is usually more yellow or buff in colour and has a distinctive cedarwood scent.
When to Find Them
This is one of the more common waxcaps, found in a wide range of unimproved grasslands as well as scrub, fixed dunes and road verges, typically fruiting from September to November.
Interesting Fact
Snowy Waxcaps are often among the first waxcaps to colonise long-established grassland. Look out for them anywhere grassland has remained unploughed and unfertilised for decades, including lawns, churchyards and roadside verges.
Join the hunt for North East Waxcaps
Urban or rural, beginner or expert, we need your help to record twelve distinctive waxcaps across the North East this autumn.
Your records can add to our understanding of these colourful fungi in the region and inform conservation and monitoring efforts.
Taking part is easy and every record counts, wherever you live in the region. Records of all waxcap species are encouraged.
