Malagasy brittlegill

Overview

The Malagasy brittlegill is the common name in the catalogue for a mushroom catalogued under the scientific name Russula edulis. It is a brittlegill, a member of the genus Russula, which has brittle flesh and a cap that can be brightly coloured. The species grows on the ground in woodland of the central plateau of Madagascar and is ectomycorrhizal, living with tree roots.

It matters as a food because it is gathered and sold. The catalogue calls it an economically important mushroom locally eaten in Madagascar.

Russula in Madagascar

Russula is the most commonly eaten and economically important mushroom genus in Madagascar. Two species are singled out in the sources reviewed, R. prolifica and R. edulis. A 2008 paper, The Edible Mushrooms of Madagascar, describes R. edulis as a newly described species alongside R. prolifica.

The Heim studies of the Russulas and Lactarius of Madagascar, first published in 1938, are the older reference for the genus on the island. A later paper notes that an earlier general dislike of Russula among Malagasy people, which Heim recorded, is no longer the case.

Habitat and harvest

The species is ectomycorrhizal and grows in the central plateau and in the woodland around it. Sources reviewed report that regularly cut Eucalyptus robusta plantations are a favoured habitat for two widely marketed edible Russula species in Madagascar.

The catalogue records the cultivation context as wild, so the mushroom is gathered rather than grown. The sources reviewed give no harvest quantity or season.

Eating and selling

The mushroom is eaten locally and sold in markets. The sources reviewed do not give a preparation, a recipe or a traditional name in Malagasy, and the page does not supply one.

The common name Malagasy brittlegill is taken from the catalogue. The sources reviewed do not confirm it as a published common name, and the name should be checked against a Malagasy source before wider use.

Identification and safety

The 2008 paper describes Russula edulis as a species from Madagascar, but a written species account is not a method for identifying a wild specimen. This page does not provide a field identification workflow or a species-level edibility verdict.

Poison Control advises never picking and eating wild mushrooms unless an expert has identified them. Local market use and a reported mild taste are not proof that a specimen is correctly identified or safe. The sources reviewed provide no preparation method for this species.

Open points

The catalogue's common name “Malagasy brittlegill” is not confirmed here by a Malagasy-language source. The sources reviewed provide no preparation method or species-specific public identification guide.