#strobilomyces

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Old Man of the Woods

Strobilomyces sp.

This shaggy, dusky mushroom is in the bolete family and can be hard to find because it often blends in with leaf litter or pinecones.

Aug. 15th, 2023

St. Louis County, Missouri, USA

Olivia R. Myers

Strubbelkopf Röhrling,

@addessaa​ said: “I found this about two weeks ago near Athens, Ohio (Southeastern Ohio) and thought it was just the coolest thing! Do you know what kind of mushroom it is?”

This is almost certainly a member of the genus Strobilomyces, often called “old man of the woods”. Like all boletes, they have pores instead of gills. These are distinguished by their gray to black color and the scales on their caps. We have a few species in the American South - Strobilomyces floccopus is probably the best known, but S. confusus also grows in eastern North America, and tends to differ mainly in the shape of its spores and by having more erect, stiffer, smaller scales on the cap. Based on the small, stiff-looking scales, this might be that species, but it’s hard to tell. Although S. dryophilus also grows in the South, it tends to be lighter in color than this. 

Strobilomyces floccopus -  Old Man of the Woods

Gray shaggy-scaly cap, partial veil, black spore print, angular pores. Edible when young. 

Strobilomyces sp. 6/19 at Historic Yates Mill State Park, North Carolina

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