Yard Mushrooms

[djg]

I have several books, but I don't know how to classify a mushroom that I've found. I could just mindlessly page through the photos, but I'd really liker to learn. So if you could give me some pointers on what to look for in classifying these, I'd appreciate it.

As the title says, these are mushrooms found regularly in my yard in the Fall (Midwest, St. Louis area).

They are in the vicinity of white pine tress; within 3 - 4 feet of the outer diameter of the tree.

They are approximately 2 - 21/2 inches in diameter. The caps are brownish yellow and the underside is a medium (not bright) yellow. I had trouble getting the color right of the underside. Also there are pores. I cut one in half to show the point of attachment, but it isn't too clear in the photo. I can take another one if needed.

What else??

Any guesses??

Thanks

[Dave W]

These are a species of Suillus, a genus of mostly pine-associating pored mushrooms that usually have sticky-to-slimy cap surfaces. Suillus mushrooms come with or without a ring (partial veil remnant). The ones seen here appear to lack the ring, although the photos do not make this clear. In my area, S. granulatus is, by far, the most common of the ringless Suillus species. The mushrooms seen here appear to have pore surface with a bit more yellow than I'd expect for S. granulatus, but I would not completely rule out this species. There are other possibilities. Another feature that would be helpful to see is the surfaces of the stalks.