Way back in 1970, this was the first work to introduce British mycologists to the growing number of species of Bolete recognised on the Continent. The New Checklist (NCL) was only 10 years old and had 45 species: now there were 67. Roy admits he chickened out at this point, and slipped in the last few as footnotes! And Boletes are probably the most striking and well known group of fungi. However, it is now showing its age as more species have been recognised (backed by DNA) in Boletus sg. Xerocomus. Leccinum, however, has come full circle, as the DNA evidence has reduced the plethora of new species added in the 1990’s back to about where we were in 1970!

The booklet presents, for each family, a key to genera and then generic keys to species, followed by detailed individual species accounts. The Ecological List groups species by life-style and host.