How to tell Silky rosegill from Destroying angel

Cap 5-12 cm across, hemispherical to egg-shaped in young mushrooms, becoming convex to flat with age. Color entirely white, creamy white, slightly yellowish in the center in old specimens. Surface smooth, slightly sticky in wet weather. No scales, no warts, no veil on the mature cap (unlike the fly agaric or Caesar's mushroom).

Cap 7-18 cm, egg-shaped or bell-shaped at first, then expanding to conical with an umbo. White or cream, ochre-brown in the center, with silky, fibrous scales in a radial pattern. Silky to the touch, with a matte sheen. The margin is often fringed with remnants of the veil.

Gilled hymenophore — gills white, free (not attached to the stem), moderately crowded. Spore print white. As in the rest of Amanita section Phalloideae, to which this species belongs, the gills are always white and free, even in mature specimens — unlike those of Agaricus.

Gilled hymenophore. Gills 6-12 mm wide, free (not attached to the stem), crowded. White at first, turning pink with age, then pinkish-brown. Spore print pink — a key feature.

Stem 8-15 cm tall, 1-2 cm thick, cylindrical, long, slender, with a sac-like volva at the base (a remnant of the universal veil that looks like an eggshell). Color entirely white. In the upper part — a white membranous ring; firm in young specimens, may disappear in old ones. The stem surface often has thin white flaky scales and fibers.

Stem 7-19 cm tall, 1-2.5 cm thick, central, cylindrical, slightly thickened toward the base. White, smooth. No ring. At the base there's a large, sac-like white or grayish volva that hugs the stem tightly, with a wide upper rim.

Flesh firm, entirely white. It does not change color when cut (unlike, for example, Agaricus mushrooms, which turn pink and darken). The smell gradually becomes unpleasant, with a hint of stale potato or chlorine — hence the epithet "stinking" in its Ukrainian name. In young mushrooms the smell is still faint, so don't rely on it as the only sign.

The flesh is white, firm in young mushrooms, quickly yellowing and turning watery with age. It may turn slightly yellow when cut. It doesn't keep — use it on the day you pick it.

Faint and unpleasant, with a hint of old potato, chlorine or fish — especially in old specimens and when the flesh is damaged. Not diagnostic for safety: the smell develops only after some time, and a young mushroom with no distinct smell can still end up in the basket and cause fatal poisoning.

Faint mushroomy smell. Mild, delicate taste with no pronounced notes. Some sources describe a barely noticeable radish-like hint in young specimens.