Small to very large agaric, growing on the ground, with a white, cream to yellow, rarely pale pink spore print. Pileus white, pale, yellow, orange, brown, red or pink, rarely green or black, dry or moist, rarely viscid. Lamellae adnate, subdecurrent or decurrent. Stipe central, rarely excentric, flesh chalky in texture. Partial veil remnants absent. Latex produced on cutting lamellae or flesh. Spores hyaline, amyloid, warty or reticulate; germ pore absent. Cheilocystidia present or absent. Lamellar trama interwoven; sphaerocytes rarely present. Pileipellis a cutis or a trichoderm. Clamp connections absent.

Russula is similar, but it lacks latex, as do other white-spored agarics of similar stature (such as Tricholoma or Leucopaxillus). Russula can also lack lamellulae, and it has abundant sphaerocytes in the lower lamellar trama (which are usually lacking in Lactarius). Some members of the Lactarius clarkeae group produce latex, but they are distinguished by the usually rich orange pileus which is not concentrically zoned, the presence of sphaerocytes in the lamellar trama, and the thick-walled terminal elements of the pileipellis.

At least nine native species: Lactarius clelandii, L. eucalypti, L. leonardii, L. mea, L. aff. piperatus, L. sepiaceus, L. stenophyllus (= Multifurca) and L. wirrabara (complex of three taxa). Three exotic species: under pines is L. deliciosus, and under birch are L. necator (= L. turpis) and L. torminosus group (including L. pubescens).

Truffle-like relatives are placed in the genus Zelleromyces.

The Lactarius clarkeae group is keyed out separately because species such as L. clarkeae often lack latex, and are also unusual because there are sphaerocytes in the lamellar trama, and thick-walled terminal elements in the pileipellis.

NOTE IN PROOF: the pleurotoid L. genevievae (with lateral stipe) has recently been described from Australia by Stubbe et al. (2012). It is rather similar in macroscopic apperance to white or pale, pleurotoid species of Clitopilus, Crepidotus and Entoloma, but is readily distinguished from these genera by the amyloid spore ornamentation.

All States and Territories.

In native forests. A few species under exotic trees such as pine and birch.

On the ground.

Ectomycorrhizal.

Bougher, N.L. (2009a), Fungi of the Perth region and beyond: a self-managed field book, Western Australian Naturalists' Club (Inc.), Perth. [Description and Illustration of L. eucalypti]

Bougher, N.L. & Syme, K. (1998), Fungi of Southern Australia. University of Western Australia Press, Nedlands. [Description, Illustration and Microcharacters of Lactarius eucalypti]

Fuhrer, B. (2005), A Field Guide to Australian Fungi. Bloomings Books, Hawthorn. [Description and Illustration of L. deliciosus, L. eucalypti, L. necator (as L. plumbeus), L. piperatus and L. wirrabara]

Fuhrer, B. & Robinson, R. (1992), Rainforest Fungi of Tasmania and South-east Australia. CSIRO Press, East Melbourne. [Illustration of L. eucalypti (as L. aff. subdulcis)]

Grgurinovic, C.A. (1997a), Larger Fungi of South Australia. The Botanic Gardens of Adelaide and State Herbarium and The Flora and Fauna of South Australia Handbooks Committee, Adelaide. [Description and Microcharacters of Lactarius clelandii, L. mea, L. necator and L. wirrabara, along with Illustration of L. deliciosus, and Key to South Australian species]

Hongo, T. & Mills, A.K. (1988), Five noteworthy larger fungi new to Tasmania, Australia, Trans. Mycol. Soc. Japan 29: 351–357. [Description, B&W Illustration and Microcharacters of L. sepiaceus]

Kränzlin, F. (2005), Fungi of Switzerland. Volume 6. Russulaceae. Verlag Mykologia, Luzern. [Illustration, Description and Microcharacters of L. deliciosus, L. necator (as L. turpis), L. pubescens and L. torminosus from Europe]

Lebel, T., Dunk, C.W. & May, T.W. (2013), Rediscovery of Multifurca stenophylla (Berk.) T.Lebel, C.W.Dunk & T.W.May comb. nov. (Russulaceae) from Australia, Mycol. Progr. 12: 497–504. [Illustration, Description and Microcharacters of L. stenophyllus (as Multifurca)]

McCann, I.R. (2003), Australian Fungi Illustrated. Macdown Productions, Vermont. [Illustration of L. deliciosus and L. eucalypti]

McNabb, R.F.R. (1971), The Russulaceae of New Zealand. 1. Lactarius DC ex S.F.Gray, New Zealand J. Bot. 9: 46–66. [Description and Microcharacters of L. sepiaceus and L. turpis from New Zealand]

Miller, O.K., Jr & Hilton, R.N. (1987), New and interesting agarics from Western Australia, Sydowia 39: 126–137. [Description, B&W Illustration and Microcharacters of L. eucalypti]

Shepherd, C.J. & Totterdell, C.J. (1988), Mushrooms and Toadstools of Australia. Inkata Press, Melbourne. [Illustration of L. deliciosus]

Stubbe, D., Nuytinck, J. & Verbeken, A. (2010), Critical assessment of the Lactarius gerardii species complex (Russulales), Fungal Biol. 114: 271–283. Microcharacters of L. leonardii (as L. aff. ochrogalactus), L. sepiaceus and L. wirrabara (the latter two both as 'cfr.')]

Stubbe, D., Le, H.T., Wang, X.-H., Nuytinck, J., Van de Putte, K. & Verbeken, A. (2012b), The Australasian species of Lactarius subgenus Gerardii (Russulales), Fungal Diversity 52: 141–167. [Illustration, Description and Microcharacters of L. genevievae and L. leonardii]

Taylor, M. (1981), Mushrooms and Toadstools. A.H. & A.W. Reid, Wellington. [Illustration of L. sepiaceus from New Zealand]

Verbeken, A., Nuytinck, J. & Stubbe, D. (2010), Type studies of six Australian and one New Zealand Lactarius species (Basidiomycota, Russulaceae), Cryptog. Mycol. 31: 235–249. [Microcharacters of L. clelandii, L. eucalypti, L. mea, L. sepiaceus (from New Zealand) and L. wirrabara]

Young, A.M. (2005b), A Field Guide to the Fungi of Australia. University of New South Wales Press, Sydney. [Description and B&W Illustration of L. deliciosus and L. aff. piperatus]