The cap of Suillus bovinus is initially convex, then flat with a wavy margin and a grey-yellow in colour.

The related Gomphidius roseus is found exclusively with this species, and is now thought to be parasitic upon the mycelium of Suillus bovinus.

Another study discovered that zinc-tolerant strains of Suillus bovinus conferred resistance to plants of Pinus sylvestris.

It is a coral pink-capped mushroom which appears in pine forests in autumn, always near the related mushroom Suillus bovinus, on which it appears to be parasitic.

Suillus bovinus tastes mild and is edible, although it was left for the medieval peasants while medieval French knights allegedly reserved the highly regarded Tricholoma equestre for themselves.

For example, a Paxillus involutus-conifer mycorrhiza seems to reduce the density of protozoa in the resulting mycorrhizosphere, but mycorrhizae formed with Lactarius rufus and Suillus bovinus have the opposite effect.

However, there is now evidence that many (and perhaps all) species in this group are parasitic upon ectomycorrhizal boletes, in relationships that are often highly species-specific, in this case Suillus bovinus.

This species was for a long time highly regarded as one of the tastier edible species, and sold in European markets; medieval French knights allegedly reserved this species for themselves, leaving the lowly bovine bolete (Suillus bovinus) for the peasants.

In a study comparing the salinity resistance of three common ectomycorrhizal fungi (the others were Suillus bovinus and S. luteus), B. luridus was the most tolerant to high concentrations of salt, and is a good candidate species for the inoculation of tree seedlings to be planted on saline soil.