A small, very brittle Russula with a variably colored cap, usually purple to violet with a darker center, and white gills with finely notched edges. The flesh tastes very hot. It is a common European species; it is also reported from Asia and North America, though North American records under this European name are unconfirmed.
Poisonous. The taste is very hot, and Wikipedia notes that it contains toxins; like other acrid Russulas it causes gastrointestinal upset (vomiting, diarrhea). Do not eat.
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Habitat
Ectomycorrhizal, probably with birch, oak and other trees; damp, shaded broadleaf woods and sometimes conifer woods, often on or near rotting wood. Usually scattered or in small groups, late summer and autumn (August to October in Britain).
Distribution
Widespread and very common in Europe, including Britain and Ireland; also temperate Asia. Wikipedia and First Nature also list North America, but R. fragilis is a European species name: none of the sources checked confirms by DNA that North American collections are the same species, and North American Russulas filed under European names (for example R. densifolia and R. xerampelina) have often turned out to be different species.
Characteristics
Cap: 2-6 cm, convex then flattened, often grooved at the margin with age; purple to violet with a darker, almost black center, but also olive-green, pinkish or pale yellow, fading; skin peels most of the way. Gills: adnate to adnexed, white to pale cream, brittle; edges finely toothed (visible with a hand lens). Stem: 2-6 cm long, 0.5-1 cm thick, white, fragile, slightly club-shaped. Flesh: white; odor faintly fruity; taste very acrid. Spore print: white. Spores: roughly globose, 7.5-9 x 6-8 um, warts forming an almost complete network (First Nature; Wikipedia).
