Boletus rubriceps, the Rocky Mountain king bolete
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Amanita caesarea Amanita cochiseana Amanita muscaria Amanita vaginata aspen bolete Barrows' bolete Big Lake Boletus barrowsii Boletus edulis boletus rubriceps Caesar's amanita coprinus comatus david arora greens peak greer grisette Harrya chromapes hypomyces lactifluorum king bolete leathers Leccinum leccinum insigne monsoon morchella sextelata mt. Lemmon pleurotus ostreatus pleurotus pulmonarius porcini potluck precipitation rain rainfall ramaria rim road San Francisco Peaks san juan fire sarcodon imbricatus shaggy mane Shroomfest slide fire sparassis crispa sparassis radicata Telluride usfs winter
Yes, of course we all call it B. edulis, but that is a European species. The taxonomic authorities have reportedly decided that this familiar friend will henceforth be B. rubriceps (“red head”).
Which taxonomic authorities, specifically? We at Mushroom Observer can find no record of this name anywhere but here.
I saw Alan Rockefeller yesterday and asked him about this issue. The B. “rubriceps” paper was submitted about 8 months ago by Arora and Frank, and is soon to be published. He says it is a high quality paper, and he expects that by this time next year it will be well accepted.
Danny,
I’m not precisely sure, I’ve heard the name used by several folks in my local club. My understanding is that this new designation is in a forthcoming paper but not yet published, so I guess I should be putting the name in double quotes.
I also recall hearing that there was a proposal to call it B. pinophilus, but Kuo disputes this terminology (http://www.mushroomexpert.com/boletus_cf_pinophilus.html)
There is very little about this on the internet, mostly having to do with a different species (B. luridus var. rubriceps) but the B. rubriceps name for the red-capped king bolete of the Rocky Mountains was also referenced in this article from 2 years ago:
https://taosmountainman.wordpress.com/2012/10/03/polyozelus-multiplex/
Perhaps it is becoming an urban legend among Southwestern foragers.
I will be at the Telluride mushroom festival at the end of the week and will try to nail this down. Presumably I can get the straight dope from Lincoff, Rockefeller, Siegel, et al.
I would also be interested in learning the full story on the proposed designation of our local version of Amanita caesarea as A. “cochiseana”, of which I have similarly had only hearsay reports. Do you know anything about this one?
I will be sure to come back and update this post once I know more about the details.
Thanks so much for stopping by, and please feel free to inquire or clarify further on anything that needs it. I am only an enthusiastic intermediate-level amateur, so I really appreciate the contributions from those who know more.