Rhodotus

Rhodotus is a genus in the fungus family Physalacriaceae. There are two species in the genus with the best known, Rhodotus palmatus, called the netted rhodotus, the rosy veincap, or the wrinkled peach. The unique characteristics of R. palmatus have made it difficult for taxonomists to agree on how it should be classified, resulting in an elaborate taxonomical history and an extensive synonymy. First named Agaricus palmatus by Bulliard in 1785, it was reclassified into several different genera before becoming Rhodotus in 1926. The familial placement of the genus Rhodotus within the order Agaricales has also been subject to dispute, and the taxon has been transferred variously to the families Amanitaceae, Entolomataceae, and Tricholomataceae. More recently, molecular phylogenetics analysis has helped determine that Rhodotus is most closely related to genera in the Physalacriaceae.

Mature specimens can usually be identified by the pinkish color and the distinctive ridged and veined surface of their rubbery caps. Variations in the color and quantity of light received during development lead to variations in the size, shape, and cap color of fruit bodies. Typically found growing on the stumps and logs of rotting hardwoods, this uncommon species has a circumboreal distribution, and has been collected in Eurasia, northern Africa, and eastern North America. Declining populations in Europe have led to its appearance in over half of the European fungal Red Lists of threatened species.