Boletus aureus

Common name: dark cep

A robust species that can reach up to 20 cms of diameter. It has a dry and detachable cuticle, smooth to the touch. The cuticle is almost black when the fungus is young. Then it gets dark brown with bronze hints.

In dry seasons it breaks apart from its radius or into polygons. It has white tubes that turn greenish, yellow and with round pores. Its stipe is hard and thick, with a lighter colour than its cap, which has a lattice-like tissue on top.

Its flesh is firm and white, which does not turn black or blue. It has a soft taste and smell. It is a southern mycorrhiza that grows on acidic floors associated to oaks, beeches and chestnut trees.  It is an excellent edible fungi, similar to a Boletus Aestivalis, B. Edulis and B. Pinophilus. All of them are highly appreciated.