Sarcodon fennicum Karsten Cap 5-15cm across, convex then flattened, often irregular in outline; dull red-brown, paler at margin; smooth then slightly scaly, especially at center. Spines on undersurface 3-5mm long, decurrent on stem, crowded; pale
buff with darker brown tips. Stem 20-50 x 10-25mm; reddish brown with darker blue-green to blackish-olive base. Flesh firm; pale buff, blue-green in stem base. Odor pleasant. Taste acrid and unpleasant. Spores subglobose, tuberculate, 5.5-6.5 x 6.8-7.5µ. Deposit brown. Habitat in groups under mixed woods, especially beech. Found in eastern North America. Season September-October. Not edible. Comment KOH on flesh does not give a green reaction as in some similar species, such as Sarcodon scabrosus (Fr.) Karsten.