28/Sep/25, 2:05 PM
Soodla jõgi, Harju, Eesti
Mixed (pine dominant) forest, mossy grassland area, in soil
59°23'11.8"N 25°23'36.2"E
🌡️ 14°C 🌥️ Partly sunny 💨 Wind 70° ENE->WSW, 22 km/h
Original Instagram postCuphophyllus virgineus
snowy waxcap
- Scientific identification
- Cuphophyllus virgineus (Wulfen) Kovalenko
- Family
- Hygrophoraceae
- Class
- Agaricomycetes
- Genus
- Cuphophyllus
Names across languages
- English: snowy waxcap
- German: Jungfern-Ellerling
- Finnish: Neidonvahakas
- Estonian: Niit-võlvnutt
- Russian: Куфофил снежно-белый
The scientific profile
From the latest record: 2025-09-28.
Hymenium
Gills, decurrent, waxy in texture; whitish to pale, sometimes tinged cream
Cap
Convex to flat or slightly depressed with age; smooth, dry to somewhat greasy when damp; white to ivory, sometimes with brownish tints centrally
Hymenium Attachment
Decurrent
Stipe
smooth, cylindrical or tapering at base; white to ivory, sometimes discolored near base
Spore print
Spore print white
Description
Occurs in old, unimproved grassland, in woodland on mossy substrates elsewhere, neither strictly saprotrophic nor mycorrhizal, but form associations with mosses or act as biotrophic endophytes
Edibility
Edible and regarded as good (though not highly prized)
Fruit body
Fruit body variable size, stipe up to ~7 cm long
Dimensions
Cap ~1–5 cm up to ~7.5 cm in larger specimens
Chemical reactions
KOH reaction on cap surface is yellowish.
Odour
Very mild smell of coconut cookies
Taste
Mild to slightly bitter/acrid
Microscopy
Spores: Ellipsoid, smooth, inamyloid; about 7.0–8.5 × 4.5–5.0 µm
Overview
Pale, waxy-gilled mushroom often found in mossy, unimproved grasslands
1989). In Nezdoīminogo, Opredelitel’ Gribov SSSR (Leningrad): 37.
Field encounters
Source hashtags
#hongos #cuphophyllusvirgineus #cuphophyllus #snowywaxcap #niitvõlvnutt #võlvnutt #neidonvahakas #jungfernellerlin #ellerling #mushroomphoto #fungiphoto #fungimacro #naturephotography #seenefotod #pilzefotografieren #фотогрибов #sieniäkuvia #houby #mycology #fungistudy #mushroom #fungi #hygrophoraceae #waxycaps #seened #pilze
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