Cortinarius scoticus

Cortinarius scoticus mushrooms have caps that are 0.7 to 1.5 centimetres (0.3 to 0.6 in) wide. They are hemispherical, maturing to a low convex or almost flat. The caps are red brown to dark red brown, and hygrophanous. The gills are brown and medium spaced. The stem is 4 to 6 centimetres (2 to 2 in) long and 0.2 to 0.3 centimetres (0.08 to 0.1 in) thick. The stems are cylindrical. When young, they are covered with silky, white fibrils, though they mature to yellowish brown. The flesh is brown. At the base of the stem, it has a weak, iodoform-like, smell that is best observed when the mushroom is slightly dried. In the gills, however, the scent is indistinct. The stem has a sparse, white, universal veil.

Microscopic characteristics. Cortinarius scoticus has basidiospores measuring 7.5 to 8.8 by 4.5 to 5.5 micrometres (μm). The spores are ellipsoid to somewhat almond-shaped, and moderately warty. They are fairly dextrinoid, meaning that they stain reddish to reddish-brown when Melzer's reagent or Lugol's solution is applied. The basidia are 25 to 34 by 7 to 10 μm. They are club-shaped, with four sterigmata. The hyphae in the flesh of the gills are yellowish brown, fairly strongly encrusted with zebra-striped encrustations. The surface of the pileipellis is pale, consisting of more or less parallel hyphae, 5 μm wide, without encrustations. …

Cortinarius scoticus is found in mesic and damp pine-dominated forests. It is known from central and northern Europe.