Content on this page requires a newer version of Adobe Flash Player.

Get Adobe Flash player
 

  • Nederlands
  • Deutsch
Search in the Encyclopedia

Water en land

Dune areas   Dunes (biotope)   Forests   Forest (biotope)   
  • Dut: Weidewasplaat
  • Lat: Hygrocybe pratensis var. pratensis
  • Eng: Meadow Waxcap
  • Ger: Wiesenellerling

 

  • Dut: Granaatbloemwasplaat
  • Lat: Hygrocybe punicea
  • Eng: Crimson Waxcap
  • Ger: Größter Saftling

 

  • Dut: Geurende wasplaat
  • Lat: Hygrocybe russocoriacea, Cuphophyllus russocoriaceus
  • Eng: Cedarwood Waxcap
  • Ger: Juchtenellerling

 

  • Dut: Scharlaken wasplaat
  • Lat: Hygrocybe coccinea
  • Eng: Scarlet waxcap
  • Ger: Kirschroter Saftling

 

  • Dut: Sneeuwzwammetje
  • Lat: Hygrocybe virginea var. virginea
  • Eng: Snowy Waxcap
  • Ger: Schneeweißer Ellerling

  

  • Dut: Rafelige parasolzwam
  • Lat: Macrolepiota excoriata
  • Eng: Frayed parasol mushroom, Lepiota excoriated
  • Ger: Ackerschirmling

 

  • Dut: Sikkelkoraalzwam
  • Lat: Clavulinopsis corniculata
  • Eng: Meadow Coral
  • Ger: Gelbe Wiesenkoralle

  

  • Dut: Adonismycena
  • Lat: Mycena adonis
  • Eng: Scarlet bonnet
  • Ger: Korallenroter Helmling

 

  • Dut: Elfenwasplaat
  • Lat: Hygrocybe ceracea
  • Eng: Butter waxcap
  • Ger: Zerbrechlicher Saftling
print print
Meadow waxcap, Sytske Dijksen, www.fotofitis.nl

Mushrooms on scanty grasslands

Mushrooms also grow on scanty grasslands, dune fields, roadsides and dikes. On the Wadden Islands, these are where you are likely to find waxy caps. Nature-lovers interested in mushrooms come from far away to spot these striking phenomena. The names alone make these beauties a curiousity! Parrot waxcap, scarlet hood, snowy waxcap ...  The olive earthtongue (Microglossum olivaceum) is also found on the same grasslands as waxcaps. It is an indicator of ancient unfertilized grasslands. It is a threatened species so the Vlielanders were very happy when it was found on their island in early November 2011.

  • Meadow waxcap
    Meadow waxcap, Sytske Dijksen, www.fotofitis.nl

    Meadow waxcaps are one of the largest of the waxcaps. As the name indicates, it grows in (grassy) meadows, but also on dike slopes. Like many waxcaps in the Netherlands, it is a rare species, although it is commonly found in specific areas on the Wadden Island Texel. The cap measures between 3 and 8 centimeters and the stem between 2 and 5 centimeters. The color of the cap varies between whitish and tawny orange and has a waxy feeling. You find it between late summer and autumn.

  • Crimson waxcap
    Crimson waxcap, Sytske Dijksen, www.fotofitis.nl

    Crimson waxcaps are extremely rare and seriously threatened in the Netherlands. However if you're in an area where this mushroom grows, it is very conspicuous with its bright crimson colored cap up to 14 centimeters in diameter, sitting on a yellowish-red stem 6 to 10 centimeters long. This mushroom grows in grasslands preferably with a constant but low dampness and where no fertilizer is used. There have even been reports of crimson waxcaps growing in gardens and churchyards. Texel and southern Limburg have several places where this mushroom is regularly found.

  • Cedarwood waxcap

    The cedarwood waxcap gives off a cedarwood scent. It is a small mushroom, no taller than 3 to 6 centimeters. The cap is creamy yellow and 1 to 3.5 centimeters in diameter. The smooth stem is white to creamy in color. In the Netherlands, it is a rare mushroom found primarily in grasslands and scanty ground in the dunes. It grows almost exclusively in specific areas along the coast, but particularly on Texel. Cedarwood waxcaps are sensitive to acid rain and eutrophication.

  • Scarlet waxcap

    The scarlet waxcap is a rare mushroom, found in the Netherlands mainly on the coast, and primarily on the island Texel. However, it isn't specifically a coastal species. Sometimes, thousands of scarlet waxcaps are found locally elsewhere in the country. However it is very sensitive to overfertilization and has disappeared in many areas.

    Scarlet waxcaps are small but beautiful fungi. The scarlet or blood-red colored cap measures 2 to 4 centimeters and is usually greasy in feeling. Close to the cap, the stem is generally the same color but turns more yellow towards the bottom. The stem measures 2 to 5 centimeters. The gills have a contrasting yellowish color. Scarlet waxcaps grow on grasslands where the grass is kept short. It is also found along roadsides and among moss growing in grassy areas, as well as on chalky slopes.

  • Snowy waxcap
    Snowy waxcap, Sytske Dijksen, www.fotofitis.nl

    It's not hard to see where this mushroom got its name from. This small snowy white waxcap often grows in small groups. The cap measures 1 to 3 centimeters and the stem 2 to 5 centimeters. It grows along the entire coast and on the Wadden Islands but is not unusual to find inland. The mushroom has a slimy coating. Snowy waxcap is resistant to lightly fertilized grasslands, grazed areas in the dunes and along roadsides.

  • Frayed parasol mushroom
    Frayed parasol mushroom, Sytske Dijksen, www.fotofitis.nl

    The frayed parasol mushroom is a rare mushroom in the Netherlands, growing in fields that are no more than moderately fertilized. Most finds are along the coast, including several on the Wadden Islands. This parasol is similar to other parasols with its ring on the stem and scales on the cap. Its major distinction is the frayed cap edges. Compared to the other coastal parasol species, the frayed parasol is generally shorter.

  • Meadow Coral
    Meadow coral, Sytske Dijksen, www.fotofitis.nl

    Meadow coral properly describes this mushroom. It grows in grasslands (meadows) and calcium-poor sand and it strongly resembles marine coral. This generally bright yellow mushroom is fairly rare in the Netherlands, found mostly along the coast and in scattered areas more inland. The island Texel serves as a good habitat for this mushroom, having been found in many areas throughout the island.

  • Scarlet bonnet
    Scarlet bonnet, Sytske Dijksen, www.fotofitis.nl

    The scarlet bonnet is a small delicate-looking mushroom. Its orange-red to salmon pink cap with white or pink gills measures 2 to 22 millimeters in diameter and sits on top of a stem up to 4 centimeters tall. This rare mushroom grows on wood debris in grasslands with moss and in both coniferous and deciduous woods. The conical cap flattens as it ages and the color fades but it always retains a pinkish color. The white hollow stem is relatively long compared to the cap and is fragile.

  • Butter waxcap

    In the Netherlands, you find butter waxcaps in scanty grasslands rich in moss, grassy areas in the dunes and on dike and roadsides. The Wadden Islands in particular are suitable for these mushrooms, but they are also found sporadically along the coast and in Drente. As the name indicates, the mushroom has a buttery color and a greasy (waxy) feeling. Despite the fact its gills are yellow, butter waxcaps have white spores. It generally never grows taller than 5 centimeters, with a cap 1-2.5 cm wide.