Meet the webcaps, the sprawling Cortinarius clan—Europe’s most species-rich larger fungi and arguably the trickiest to name. In London’s older woods, their arrival sparks excitement: these elusive mushrooms may signal rare, undisturbed habitats. Identifiable by a delicate cobweb veil and often a sticky cap, webcaps dazzle across a spectrum from ochres and tans to unforgettable purples and startling blood- and cinnamon-reds. Subgroups like Telamonia, Dermocybe, Myxacium, and Phlegmacium hint at ID, but microscopes usually finish the job. Admire, don’t taste: orellanine toxins have caused kidney failure, and several species are endangered. Seek them in quiet, ancient woodland—think shaded beech and conifer glades—where lilac gills, cinnabar bands, or a cedar scent might stop you in your tracks.
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