About Amanita frostiana (Peck) Sacc.
Amanita frostiana (Peck) Sacc. has several distinct physical traits that separate it from other species in the genus Amanita, including cap color that darkens over the central disc, and a universal veil that ranges in color from yellow to cream. A full description of all parts of the fungus is provided below.
The cap of Amanita frostiana is convex or occasionally shield-shaped, and flattens with age, with a fairly distinctly lined margin. It reaches 2–8 centimetres (1–3 inches) wide. Cap colors range from yellow to golden orange, and may also be scarlet or deep reddish pink. The cap surface is smooth, and becomes slightly sticky when moist.
The stem, also called the stipe, bears yellow to cream universal veil tissue that forms yellow powder or flakes at the stalk base. The stipe measures 47 to 62 millimetres (2 to 2+1⁄2 inches) long, 4 to 11 millimetres in diameter, and has a persistent annulus.
The gills are free, close together, and cream-colored in mass. Short gills are numerous, and are truncate to excavated-truncate in shape.
Spores of Amanita frostiana measure 7.0 to 10.2 μm wide; they are shaped globose to subglobose, and are inamyloid, meaning they do not turn black when iodine is applied.
This rare species is native to eastern United States and southeastern Canada. It typically grows in mixed forests dominated by oaks (genus Quercus) and conifers (family Pinaceae).
