Pholiota aurivella

This is a key to gilled mushrooms, that is, mushrooms having a definite cap with a fertile surface consisting of gills. The fruiting body usually also has a stem, although that may be lateral or absent (usually, then, the mushroom is growing from wood). You can use this key to identify mushrooms that you find.

Fruiting body containing fibers (usually in the stalk)

Gills not free
Spore print tan, orange, deep ochre, yellowish olive, olive brown, rusty or cinnamon brown or deep brown
Ring usually either absent or not membranous

Growing on wood

Cap usually more than 2" across, and sometimes up to 8; usually tan, yellow, or pumpkin-colored

Having more than one of the following characters:
Cap slimy (all slimy MediumToBigLignicolousBrownSpored mushrooms go here)
Cap covered with pointy or fibrillose scales (all MediumToBigLignicolousBrownSpored mushrooms with this sort of scales go here)
Cap often yellowish

Growing on wood
Cap and stem with many pointy or patchy scales
Sometimes the scales wash off the cap in the rain (with a slippery cap, it's especially easy for that to happen); but they usually remain on the stalk (which is protected from the rain by the cap)
Cap typically yellowish

Pholiota aurivella     (Fries) Kummer

Here are the characters that distinguish this species from the others in its group. For its more general characters, see higher up on the page.
If there's just a few words or a microscopic feature here, a more thorough description can be found above.

Diagnosis

• Cap up to 6" across; yellow; slimy when fresh, viscid when not; scales often flattened, spotlike, or patchy

Microscropic Characters

• Spores 7-11 x 4.5-6 µm, with an apical pore
  
• Pleurocystidia present; I have contradictory testimony on the presence of chrysocystidia

Comments

The persistently sticky cap, and the flattened scales that are more spread out than on other Scaly Pholiotas led one field guide to name this "The Onion Bagel Mushroom"


 

 

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