Goatcheese webcap or Orange webcap
How they differ, how to recognize them and which is more dangerous — a mushroom comparison
The short answer
Goatcheese webcap and Orange webcap are similar species that can be mixed up while foraging. The main visible difference: cap color: Goatcheese webcap — violet, brown, grey, Orange webcap — brown, dark brown. The mushrooms also differ in the following features: cap surface, smell, stem.

Goatcheese webcap
Cortinarius camphoratus

Orange webcap
Cortinarius mucosus
📊 Comparing characteristics
| Characteristic | Goatcheese webcap | Orange webcap |
|---|---|---|
| Edibility class | Goatcheese webcap Inedible | Orange webcap Inedible |
| Season | Goatcheese webcap SummerAutumn | Orange webcap SummerAutumn |
| Use | Goatcheese webcap Not eaten | Orange webcap Not eaten |
| Size | Goatcheese webcap Medium (5–15 cm) | Orange webcap Medium (5–15 cm) |
| Cap color | Goatcheese webcap VioletBrownGrey | Orange webcap BrownDark brown |
| Cap shape | Goatcheese webcap Convex | Orange webcap Convex |
| Cap surface | Goatcheese webcap Smooth | Orange webcap Slimy |
| Taste | Goatcheese webcap Unknown | Orange webcap Unknown |
| Smell | Goatcheese webcap Chemical | Orange webcap Odorless |
| Flesh color change | Goatcheese webcap No change | Orange webcap No change |
| Hymenophore | Goatcheese webcap Gilled | Orange webcap Gilled |
| Stem | Goatcheese webcap Bulbous | Orange webcap Central |
| Ring (veil) | Goatcheese webcap Ring remnants | Orange webcap Ring remnants |
| Volva | Goatcheese webcap No volva | Orange webcap No volva |
| Substrate | Goatcheese webcap Soil | Orange webcap Soil |
| Nutrition type | Goatcheese webcap Mycorrhizal | Orange webcap Mycorrhizal |
| Partner trees | Goatcheese webcap SprucePineBeech | Orange webcap Pine |
📅 Seasonality
Goatcheese webcap
Fruiting season
August – October
Orange webcap
Fruiting season
August – October
🔬 Morphology
Cap
Goatcheese webcap
The cap is 4-9 cm across, hemispherical to conical-convex in young mushrooms, becoming convex-flat with a noticeable low umbo over time. The color is grayish-lilac, lilac-brown, with a violet tint when young, fading to grayish-ochre with age. The surface is smooth, slightly slimy in wet weather. The cap margin is thin, with fine radial fibers.
Orange webcap
The cap is 5-10 cm across, hemispherical with an inrolled margin in young mushrooms, becoming convex to flat over time. The color is chestnut-brown, honey-brown, darker in the center, paler at the margin. The surface is very slimy in wet weather — a hallmark of the species. The cap skin peels off easily, as in a slippery jack. In dry weather the cap is simply shiny, without noticeable slime.
Hymenophore
Goatcheese webcap
The hymenophore is gilled — the gills are attached to the stem and moderately crowded. In young mushrooms they are lilac, mauve-gray, later turning rusty brown as the spores ripen. The spore print is rusty brown — a diagnostic feature of the genus Cortinarius. In young mushrooms the gills are covered by a cobwebby partial veil (the cortina) — a characteristic feature of the genus.
Orange webcap
The hymenophore is gilled — the gills are attached to the stem and moderately crowded. In young mushrooms they are pale cream to pale ochre, later turning rusty brown as the spores ripen. The spore print is rusty brown — a diagnostic feature of the genus Cortinarius. In young mushrooms the gills are covered by a cobwebby partial veil (the cortina).
Stem
Goatcheese webcap
The stem is 5-10 cm tall, 1-2 cm thick, cylindrical, with a bulbous swelling at the base. The color is lilac to violet in the upper part, paler to whitish lower down. The surface has fine lilac fibers. On the stem, remnants of the cobwebby cortina — noticeable in young mushrooms, disappearing in older ones and leaving a thin band of rusty-brown spores on the stem.
Orange webcap
The stem is 6-12 cm tall, 1-2 cm thick, cylindrical, long, often tapering toward the base. The color is whitish to cream, with reddish tints toward the base. The surface is smooth, slimy in the upper part, with fine lengthwise fibers. On the stem, remnants of the cobwebby cortina form a thin band dusted with rusty-brown spores.
Flesh
Goatcheese webcap
The flesh is firm, white to pale lilac. When cut it does not change color. The smell is strong and sickly, camphor-like, with a note of raw potato or rancid cheese — its most characteristic diagnostic feature. The taste is mild, but given the smell it's not worth trying.
Orange webcap
The flesh is firm, white to cream. When cut it does not change color. The smell is faint and neutral, with no distinctive notes.
Smell
Goatcheese webcap
Strong sickly camphor-and-potato smell, with a note of rancid cheese or a damp cellar. You can catch it from a distance. It opens up when you rub the flesh. This is the most reliable diagnostic feature of the species — few other webcaps have such a pungent smell.
Orange webcap
Faint, neutral, mushroomy, with no pronounced notes.
📍 Habitats
Goatcheese webcap
Orange webcap
👀 Similar mushrooms — don't mix them up!
❓ Frequently asked questions
Can Goatcheese webcap and Orange webcap be mixed up?
How to tell Goatcheese webcap from Orange webcap?
Is Orange webcap edible?
When do Goatcheese webcap and Orange webcap grow?
Sources
- [1]Вікіпедія (українська)
- [2]Атлас грибів України, Зеров Д.К. (1979)
- [3]MycoBank Database
- [4]Index Fungorum
- [5]GBIF
- [6]iNaturalist Ukraine