Two-colored Bolete

Appearance

The color of the cap of the two-colored bolete varies from light red and almost pink to brick red. The most common coloration is brick red when mature.

The cap usually ranges from 5 cm to 15 cm in width, with bright yellow pores underneath.

The stem of the two-colored bolete ranges from 5 cm to 10 cm in length and ranges from 1 cm to 3 cm in width. The stem coloration is yellow at the apex and a red or rosy red for the lower two thirds.

When injured it bruises blue very slowly and may hardly change color at all in some cases. The stem lacks an ring and lacks a partial veil.

The spore deposit of the two-colored bolete is olive-brown. Viewed with a microscope, the spores are slightly oblong to ventricose in face view; in profile view, the spores are roughly inequilateral to oblong, and have a shallow suprahilar depression.

The spores appear nearly hyaline to pale dingy ochraceous when mounted in potassium hydroxide solution, have a smooth surface, and measure 8–12 by 3.5–5 μm.

The tube trama is divergent and gelatinous, originates from a single central strand, not amyloid, and will often stain yellow-brown when placed in dilute potassium hydroxide.

Distribution

The two-colored bolete is distributed from southeastern Canada and the Great Lakes Region, primarily east of the Rocky Mountains, as far south as the Florida peninsula, and out to the Midwest as far as Wisconsin.

Habitat

It is commonly found in deciduous woodland and usually grows under or close to broad-leaved trees, especially oak. It can be found in isolation and in groups or clusters, primarily during June through October.