Template:POTD/2012-09-21
The pointed Cortinarius (Cortinarius vanduzerensis) is a species of mushroom found only in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The fruit bodies have a slimy dark chestnut-brown cap that becomes deeply radially grooved or corrugated in maturity, and reaches diameters of up to 8 cm (3.1 in). The stem is lavender, measuring 10–18 cm (3.9–7.1 in) long and 1–2 cm (0.4–0.8 in) thick. The edibility of the mushroom has not been determined, and it has been described as "much too slippery to be of value".Photo: John Kirkpatrick