Cortinarius is a globally distributed genus of mushrooms in the family Cortinariaceae. It is suspected to be the largest genus of agarics, containing over 2,000 widespread species. A common feature among all species in the genus Cortinarius is that young specimens have a cortina (veil) between the cap and the stem, hence the name, meaning curtained. Most of the fibres of the cortina are ephemeral and will leave no trace once gone, except for limited remnants on the stem or cap edge in some species. All have a rusty brown spore print. The common names cortinar and webcap refer to members of the genus. Due to dangerous toxicity of several species and the fact that it is difficult to distinguish between various species of the genus, non-expert consumption of mushrooms from the genus is discouraged.
The Cortinariaceae are a large family of gilled mushrooms found worldwide, containing over 3200 species. The family takes its name from its largest genus, the varied species of the genus Cortinarius. Many genera formerly in the Cortinariaceae have been placed in various other families, including Hymenogastraceae, Inocybaceae and Bolbitiaceae.
Cortinarius austrovenetus, alternately known as Dermocybe austroveneta and commonly known as the green skin-head but also known as green dermocybe is an inedible brightly coloured green gilled fungus that naturally occurs in south eastern Australia.
Cortinarius flexipes is a fungus, specifically a mushroom, a small brown species in the genus Cortinarius. It is commonly known as the Pelargonium webcap because of its unusual smell of Pelargonium.
Cortinarius semisanguineus is a medium-sized mushroom with a pale brown to ochre cap, and bright blood-red gills. It belongs to the genus Cortinarius, a group collectively known as webcaps. It is found growing in conifer plantations, and has recently been given the fanciful common name of surprise webcap. In the past it has been called the red-gilled webcap.
Phlegmacium triumphans, also known as the birch webcap, or yellow girdled webcap is a basidiomycete mushroom in the family Cortinariaceae. It is found in Europe and regarded as edible by some authorities. However, others call it suspect and it resembles deadly species.
Cortinarius violaceus, commonly known as the violet webcap or violet cort, is a fungus in the webcap genus Cortinarius native across the Northern Hemisphere. The fruit bodies are dark purple mushrooms with caps up to 15 cm (6 in) across, sporting gills underneath. The stalk measures 6 to 12 centimetres by 1 to 2 cm, sometimes with a thicker base. The dark flesh has a smell reminiscent of cedar wood. Forming symbiotic (ectomycorrhizal) relationships with the roots of various plant species, C. violaceus is found predominantly in conifer forests in North America and deciduous forests in Europe.
Cortinarius archeri, commonly known as the purple emperor, or the emperor cortinar, is a species of mushroom in the genus Cortinarius native to Australia. The distinctive mushrooms have bright purple caps that glisten with slime, and appear in autumn in eucalypt forests.
Cortinarius hemitrichus, also known as the frosty webcap, is a basidiomycete mushroom of the genus Cortinarius. Young mushrooms are characterized by their brown cone-shaped caps covered with dense white fibrils.
Cortinarius cinnamomeus, also known as the cinnamon webcap, is a basidiomycete mushroom of the genus Cortinarius. The fungus produces brown fruit bodies with caps up to 6 cm (2.4 in) wide and stems up to 12 cm (4.7 in) long. The closely crowded gills underside the cap are initially yellow before turning brown. Cortinarius cinnamomeus is common in damp places in coniferous forests. It is distributed throughout the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere.
Cortinarius anomalus, also known as the variable webcap, is a basidiomycete fungus of the genus Cortinarius. It produces a medium-sized mushroom with a grayish-brown cap up to 5 cm (2 in) wide, gray-violet gills and a whitish stem with pale yellow belts below. The mushroom grows solitarily or in scattered groups on the ground in deciduous and coniferous forests. It is found throughout the temperate zone of the northern hemisphere.
The Orellani are a group of seven related species in the genus Cortinarius that have been classified as a section of the subgenus Leprocybe or a subgenus in their own right. They are among world's most poisonous mushrooms as they contain the highly toxic compound orellanine. The best-known species are the deadly webcap and the fool's webcap, C. orellanus.
Cortinarius orellanus, commonly known as the fool's webcap or fools webcap, is a species of deadly fungus in the family Cortinariaceae native to Europe. Within the genus it belongs to a group known as the Orellani, all of which are highly toxic—eating them results in kidney failure, which is often irreversible. The mushroom is generally tan to brown all over.
Meinhard Michael Moser was an Austrian mycologist. His work principally concerned the taxonomy, chemistry, and toxicity of the gilled mushrooms (Agaricales), especially those of the genus Cortinarius, and the ecology of ectomycorrhizal relationships. His contributions to the Kleine Kryptogamenflora von Mitteleuropa series of mycological guidebooks were well regarded and widely used. In particular, his 1953 Blätter- und Bauchpilze [The Gilled and Gasteroid Fungi ], which became known as simply "Moser", saw several editions in both the original German and in translation. Other important works included a 1960 monograph on the genus Phlegmacium and a 1975 study of members of Cortinarius, Dermocybe, and Stephanopus in South America, co-authored with the mycologist Egon Horak.
Cortinarius porphyroideus, commonly known as purple pouch fungus, is a secotioid species of fungus endemic to New Zealand. It was one of six species that appeared as part of a series depicting native New Zealand fungi on stamps, released in 2002.
Cortinarius kaputarensis is a species of truffle-like fungus in the family Cortinariaceae. Described as a new species in 2010, it is known only from New South Wales in Australia.
Cortinarius sanguineus, commonly known as the blood red webcap or blood red cortinarius, is a species of fungus in the genus Cortinarius.
Cortinarius metallicus, originally described as Rozites metallica and commonly known as the steel blue rozites, is a species of mushroom native to Australia.
Cortinarius canabarba is a fungus of the genus Cortinarius native to Europe. It was described by Austrian mycologist Meinhard Michael Moser in 1966.
Hygronarius is a genus of fungi in the family Cortinariaceae.
