A large Milkcap that can grow up to 30cm in diameter and exudes abundant amounts of milk/latex making it fairly easy to identify.
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Fleecy Milkcap
(4 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
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Fleecy Milkcap
| Mushroom Type | |
| Common Names | Fleecy Milkcap (EN), Cap Llaeth Cnufiog (CY), Mleczajowiec Chrząstka (PL), Pelyhes Keserűgomba (HU) |
| Scientific Name | Lactifluus vellereus |
| Synonyms | Lactarius vellereus |
| Season Start | Aug |
| Season End | Nov |
| Average Mushroom height (CM) | 12 |
| Average Cap width (CM) | 20 |
Please note that each and every mushroom you come across may vary in appearance to these photos.
Cap
White to off-white and starting convex but soon flattening out to become funnel shaped, covered in tiny white hairs. When old, the cap is usually discoloured and covered in forest debris.
Gills
White, decurrent gills that can discolour brown with age, usually where the latex has dried. This mushroom will produce a lot of latex if the gills are damaged.
Milk
White and very abundant. Mild tasting.
Stem
It has a short, fat, white stem with a fine down covering.
Flesh
White and very tough and firm.
Habitat
Deciduous and mixed woodland.
Possible Confusion
Can look very similar to the Giant Funnel (Aspropaxillus giganteus), pictured, but the Giant Funnel does not produce a milk like latex when the gills are damaged.
Trooping Funnel (Infundibulicybe geotropa) can also look similar but again does not produce latex and has a much longer stem.
Peppery Milkcap (Lactifluus piperatus), is smaller and has very hot ‘milk’.
Spore Print
White. Ellipsoid with warts joined by tiny ridges into an incomplete network.
Taste / Smell
The latex is mild but the flesh is acrid.
Frequency
Occasional, but widespread all around the UK. It might be locally common, especially in old deciduous woodlands.
Other Facts
This mushroom is considered inedible but is consumed in Eastern Europe and Russia where they have a liking for hot mushrooms.
The Fleecy Milkcap has been separated from the Lactarius genus and is now in the Lactifluus genus.
In March 2025 the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) added 1000 fungal species to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The IUCN (Global) Conservation Status of Fleecy Milkcap (Lactifluus vellereus) is: LC – Least Concern, with stable population. For more information, see on the following link.
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