New Waxcap variety

Returning to the subject of the moment here at The Beeches which is grassland fungi, I have a new waxcap which is pretty much a white version of the Meadow Waxcap. This year I have had hundreds of Meadow Waxcaps (Hygrocybe pratensis) and it is probably the most common waxcap on site but there are a few white fungi which look very similar in size and in the gill formation. There is a question as to whether these are a separate species or a variety - the variety proposal is based on the fact that it is only the colour that distinguishes it whereas the lack of any intermediate forms argues for a species definition. However as I have the book by Boertmann on genus Hygrocybe, I shall follow him in treating it as a variety. The photo above is therefore Hygrocybe pratensis var. pallida.