Snow fungus or tremella fuciformis is a jelly like mushroom. Its slimey, small, and delicate but can bend a little without being damaged. This mushroom was one of the first truly strange and otherworldly mushrooms I'd ever observed in the wild. Apparently edible, but I've never tried or seen enough to be worth harvesting.
Another otherworldly mushroom, this time like a fairy tale castle. This is ramaria aurea. I always imagine myself as a tiny creature squatting inside one of these like an abandoned castle long after all the kings have gone. They can be about 6 inches long, 4 wide and grow by themselves or in clusters. They are pretty breakable but a little flexible. Other known coral mushrooms like this can be different colors like white or pale, orange and purple. Some sources on the internet say this is edible, my guide book says it is not. I haven't tried though. Such is the struggle of mycologists everywhere.
The weeping oak bracket is a parasitic fungi that consumes wood. It causes white rot. There is a wikipedia entry on white rot thats pretty dense. Some mushrooms grow on non living things, some grow with other organisms to better the lives of each other and there are some that grow like vampires on their hosts. Oak bracket is firmly attached to whatever its growing on. Where its not wet with this mysterious amber fluid thats pooling on top of it, its strangely soft and fuzzy like fabric or moss on top of a rock. They grow at the base of trees and can get pretty big.
Amanita vaginata or the grisette is a very pretty mushroom to me. It's grey cap with striation running up and down looks sort of similar to reptile skin or fish scales. Note its long creamy textureless stem. This is edible however I haven't eat one. This amanita is part of a complex, or as far as I understand it; its one specific mushroom that has a family of very similar but genetically distinct members. How dangerous does that make it? I don't really know. The amanita genius is not still very understood to modern scientists but there are some experts out there. But it should be mentioned that the amanita genus contains some of the deadliest poisons known.
Ganoderma tsugae or the hemlock varnish shelf is colloquially a type of reishi mushroom. Reishi mushrooms may have a long history, 4000 years maybe as a medicinal mushroom used around the world. It is too hard to eat so instead it is made into an extract or steeped in tea. Even modern science seems to show it may have anti inflammatory properties, anti cancer properties and might even prevent cognitive impairment. Its something to contemplate how much knowledge from the past and our connection to the wild around us has been lost. As you may notice this mushroom does not have gills. It is a polypore. Up close it looks like many many holes have poked on the under side of the mushroom but no that is just how it has evolved to reproduce. Many people unfamilliar with mushrooms are suprised to learn they can be like this too.
Oyster mushrooms, pleurotus ostreatus are another very popular edible mushroom around the world. They can grow up to 12 inches long in a fan, or shell shape and frequently grow in overlapping clusters. As their name implies they do in fact taste and smell fishy. It has sort of a rubbery feel and grows out from a short stalk on its substrate which can be wood, hay or more absurd things like coffee grounds, corn cobs, and out of books. They are quite good when cooked properly, kind of gross when not.
Don't laugh okay this mushroom is called the hairy panus. It grows on hardwood. I said don't laugh. I mean hardwood thats died recently. It has white, slightly brown gills but might actually be a polypore mushroom depending on your definition. There is a notorious article called 'What, If Anything, Is a Gilled Mushroom?' that explains how some mushrooms genetically are closer to other polypore mushrooms but have carried genes that now express themselves through gills independently from their reproductive neccessity. It highlights a bit of the absurdity of we find ourselves in by trying to land on definite answers.
Jelly ear or wood ear or auricularia angiospermarum is another edible wild mushroom. Its very flexible and can quickly bounce back to perfect shape after squeezing it in your hand. Its very mild in taste and mostly serves to absorb the flavors of whats cook with it. Its texture is very nice though. It's very good in eastern soups. Like many mushrooms it is more popularly eaten in other countries around the world. I find this in very humid and mostly shaded environments during spring and summer.
Coprinellus disseminatus is the fairy ink cap. Hundreds of these fragile little mushrooms fruit and disappear in just two to three days. If you're ever lucky enough to see a couple in the woods growing around the stump of a dead tree be sure to remember the spot and come back after it rains. Finding this mushroom fills me with joy. How could one not smile at such a sight? Apparently edible but not very good or worth eating (too cute).
I saw these pheasant back mushrooms from my bike after the first big rain of the year. Unfortunately for me by the time I had found them so had the bugs. The pores underneath are large and angular. The stem is thick and firmly attached to the wood it grows from. On the top of the mushrooms grow a brown tail feather like pattern. These are apparently edible and tasty.
Galiella rufa is the peanut butter cup mushroom. Theyre rubby and the outside chocolate layer is a little hairy too. My guide book says they are inedible but there are a number of posts online saying theyre okay if you like the texture and that theyre commonly eaten in other parts of the world. Whose to say? Not me or my website. But it does make you wonder what else does our culture not know?
Amanita Jacksonii is a tasty mushroom that you should be cautious about eating. Its beautiful shiny red colors really pop out of the woods and make them easy to spot. The edges of the caps have striation lines going down them. The gills underneath are lemon skin yellow and so is the ring around its stem. Its stem will be orangey yellow and will have little fibers sticking out all over it. If you cut the stem in half it will be hollow inside, often with fibers there too, but always distinctly and definitely hollow. The entire mushroom will grow from the ground out of an egg like structure that feels very soft like cotton or tissue paper. Its taste is something in the family of cucumber. Other people say its like fancy cheese and I sometimes kind of taste that too. Its very light and good. A little oil and salt is all you'll need with it. Its enjoyably crunchy. Its one of the very few mushrooms that you can actually and should eat without cooking it. This mushroom is also part of a complex and there are many varieties around. I have seen very similar mushrooms with only different coloring on the caps, or differnt colored gills, no egg at the bottom, and non hollow stems. I strongly recommend avoiding anything thats different from exactly what I've described.
Wolfs milk is technically not a mushroom but a very cool slime mold. If you poke this round blister like thing a brightly colored pastel orangey pink pudding will ooze out from inside of it. Ive never tasted it and probably shouldnt but I do really want to. Everywhere I look says this isn't edible even if it is very cool. It is one of natures forbidden gushers I suppose.
This big boy is meripilus sumstinei or the black staining polypore. When its damaged after about 20 or so minutes it will have developed dark stains on its injuries. This is a parasitic and edible mushroom but not a very popular one. Its best eaten when it's still very small as when its allowed to grow it is quite fiberous and tough to chew through. Its flavor is pretty unremarkable but mushroomy. Most people prefer to make jerky with it but throwing it in a stew or soup works fine too. The water its cooked in will also turn a blackish color. If left alone they can grow to impressive sizes of up to a foot and a half in diameter. They tend to grow in clusters under deciduous trees and will reappear in the same place every year until theyve exhausted their resources.
Lentinus tigrinus is a fuzzy mushroom that grows out of wood. The fuzz grows in a sort of scaley pattern on the surface of the cap that funnels down slightly at the center. There are often a couple of them all closer to each other. It is a gilled polypore. I've read that it is a very good medicinal mushroom but there is not a lot of information about it that I've found.
Dog vomit slime mold is a good but cruel name for this strange creature. If your a nerd Fuligo Septica is good. It is technically a protist which is a class of organisms more closely related to amoebas and certain seaweeds than fungi. It does not have cell walls. Its just a bunch of nuclei growing in a big gross foamy scarmabled egg mess. Not edible, but too strange to eat anyway.
Lactarius indigo or the indigo milk cap is an absolute favorite mushroom of mine. Its amazing mushrooms can be such a unique color like this. The gills are also a deep blue color. When you damage the mushroom a densely pigmented blue liquid oozes out of it. You can use it to paint on your body and face as it comes off easliy with water. When its small it is very button like in appearance but as it grows the center funnels in slightly and the gills open higher. It also has little bands of differing blue colors where it had spurts of growth. Its exceptionally pretty. The mushroom is also edible and somewhat tasty. Ive had some that tasted good and some that tasted bad. There are other lactarius russulas I've found that are white and ooze white liquid, orange ones that ooze orange. Inedible lactarius mushrooms have a peppery hot and bitter taste. By the way it is safe to taste the colored liquid that comes out of these mushrooms just dont swallow it to be safe.
This is the only macrolepiota procera, parasol mushroom I've ever found. It was in the fall deep in the woods growing all by itself between two pines that had been blown over a few years ago. It has a scaley grey textured pattern on the top. Beautiful long white gills. The ring around is not attached to the stem and you can move it up and down even. It smells like almonds and is reportedly very delicious. I did take it home with me but I didn't eat it. I still have it dried though.
This is the enoki mushroom or flammulina velutipes (very fun to say). Some fans of eastern cuisine may recognize the name but will notice its appearance is very different than what they are familiar with. The cultivated form of this mushroom is grown in a special environment that causes it to grow in long white strands. I think they do this by growing them in the dark and strecting rubber bands around them. The wild version is much different. It's also known as velvet foot because the way the base of its stem feels. Its stem also commonly gradients to a blackish color. The caps are also very sticky and slimey which is a distinctive feature for it. Its gills are white to whiteish yellow. Spore print white. This mushroom does NOT have a ring on its stem. I mention many specifics of this mushroom because there is a very similar looking mushroom called the deadly galerina. The deadly galerina mushroom will kill you (of course) as it has the same amatoxins as some of the most poisonious mushrooms in the world. I strongly recommend to avoid this mushroom and simply enjoy it from grocery stores and restaurants but its wild form is very fun to poke and play with. It has a very satisfying crunch and tastes pretty good.
While we are on the subject of deadly mushrooms I shall introduce to you what is perhaps the most deadly mushroom in the world. This is the destroying angel, amanita bisporigera. Its beauty is quiet poetic isnt it? Its European cousin is amanita virosa but they are more or less the same for our purposes of identification. They are pure white. White cap, gills, stem, skirt. They are mostly accidentally eaten by beginner or amatuer mushroom hunters that mistake them for puff balls or other similar mushrooms when they are still very small, but occasionally even experienced hunters accidentally consume them. As you can see they like to grow around pines and mostly show up in spring and summer. They contain amatoxins which bind to proteins in your body and essentially -how its been described- they melt your liver. You won't notice sickness until hours or the day after you've eaten the mushroom and by then its compounds have already been absorbed into your body and may already be too late to save you. It is however safe to touch and to smell. But under no circumstances should this mushroom be put inside your mouth. If interested I recommend this article titled "I survived the destroying angel"
This beautiful goth mushroom is called Cantharellula Umbonata, the greyling. My guide book says that its edible and quite tasty but I cant confirm this for you. This photo is the only time I've ever found this mushroom as its quiet hard to find due to its color and relatively small size. Its cap is a beautiful blackish funnel shape with a small nipple in the center, and its gills in a beautiful contrast are white. I do remember that it was in the winter when I discovered this while walking with a friend and it was growing in a mostly pine area of the forest as you can see.
Lions mane or Hericium Erinaceus is perhaps one of the more famous mushrooms out there for its incredibly unique and otherworldly appearance. Mycologists by hobby and profession call these kinds of mushrooms tooth mushrooms. You may have already heard that this one is edible and I can confirm that and will add that it's one of the most delicious mushrooms I've tried. Its texture and taste is very similar to crab meat. I am a big fan. There is also very promising research to suggest this mushroom has excellent brain health properties. In the winters when there is not much else around even finding a small lions mane mushroom is a great delight. Look in moist environments on both living and decaying logs nearby rivers. They are also commonly found growing high up in trees, too high to reach without ladders or equipment to cut them free. I always think of a story a friend told me where he found a lions mane mushroom with an arrow shot into it -imagining a clueless hunter practicing his shot on an unknown bright white target in the forest.
This enormous mushroom as you can see was an absolute joy to find and serves us into a lesson of what is an unfortunate truth for us mycologists -they are sometimes very difficult to solidly identify. This may be amanita abrupta, or amanita ravenelii. Amanita mushrooms are really a study of their own and there are only a handful of experts in the whole world. I am not one of them but I can say with some help from the internet and my guide book its pretty likely its one of these two. Its just ridiculously large. Warty cap. White gills. Stinks like chlorine. I wouldn't dare eat it, just look at the dang thing. Edibility unkown and lets keep it that way. I found it in an area of the woods that has both leafy and piney trees so it makes my identifying it all that more difficult but you don't have to understand something to enjoy it.
The Old man of the woods, strobilomyces strobilaseus, is a very handsome mushroom. On his cap are dark brown cottony scales that form a mountain like pattern around and out from the center. The cap appears whiter as you move toward its edges and on its underside are many tiny brown black pores. Like some other polypores this one bruises when damaged going from orangey red to black. I found these in a particularly mushroomy area where I tend to find many different kinds growing close to one another. This is edible but I havent tried it. Reportly not remarkable in taste.
Hymenopellis radicata. The beech root(er) mushroom. This one may seem familar if you're browsed my website a little (free mushroom hunt simulation) as its a species I photographed and never could find out what it is. Years later on a hunt with a friend we came across the mushroom in all its glory much bigger and white gills wide open. I was astounded and he said calmly 'yeah thats a beech rooter'. Turns out hes eaten a couple before and they're quite good. I havent tried it still but the next one is mine. The top is very sticky and its stem very long and pretty easy to break and slender. This one is as long as my arm, at least 14 inches.
Omphalotus illudens tricks many new and bold mushroom foragers into a night of sickness. Its a harsh lesson but luckily not one that will kill you. They look pretty similar to chanterelles but there are big differences to be aware of. First, these will only grow on wood, as opposed to chanterelles that will only grow from the ground. That can sometimes be confusing because they will grow from wood that has been buried and can appear on the grounds surface. Take note of any nearby decaying logs. They will also have gills under the cap and not ridges. They grow in large clusters sometimes attached to each other which is not a very common thing for chanterelles to do. And lastly the inside of the mushroom is an orange color, as opposed to chanterelles which are sort of a chickeny white. A cool property of these is that they glow in the dark! We think this is a reproductive adaptation to encourage insects to visit and spread its spores.
This funky guy is dyers polypore, phaeolus schweinitzii. I've only ever seen it growing under conifers and they tend to grow around and encase pine needles, grass and plant leafs in their fruiting body. Dyers polypore is not concerned with these things and will grow to a healthy 10 inches in diameter about the size of a basketball. Its not edible but can be boiled to extract a densely pigmented gold yellow dye.
Tremella mesenterica or witches butter is another jelly like fungi. More often it grows in decent size clusters overtaking tree branches and can be around 3 inches big. Its mildly translucent, slimey jiggly and apparently edible but doesn't taste like much.
Have another jelly fungi on the house. Amber jelly roll, or exidia crenata is another edible mushroom that I unfortunately havent tried myself. It said to be pretty unremarkable though much like many of the other jelly fungi are. I found this in the winter I think early January, on a fallen branch. The photo doesnt do it justice. They were completely covering the branch and densely packed together. To me they looked much like raisins do. They are not so big individually, about the same size as the other jelly fungi I have listed here. The only large jelly fungi I'm aware of are the wood ears.
Radulomyces copelandii or the asian beauty fungus is native to the eastern parts of the world and has only recently made its way to the Americas. In fact the oldest documented sighting of this mushroom in our region of the world was recorded only in 2011. It feels pretty surreal to think about how the world changes in just a life time and the luck to have even found this. I was with a friend when we found it and at first we were astonished that we had maybe found an enormous cluster of lions lane but it felt so wrong and we were rightfully very cautious to identify it as such. Firstly the way it was growing was highly suspicious. Lions mane grows in a more globular kind of way. The tendrils were more firm and removing it from the tree it peeled off like a crust. Its not soft and squishy like lions mane is. We took a sample home to study it more and eventually confirmed its identity. It is said to be inedible but I'm not sure if its poisious. I suspect in the future foraging books will be forced to mention this mushroom as a lions mane lookalike. It almost fooled us but we are a little more wise than beginners and we are trying to be old mycologists, not bold mycologists.
Amanita banningiana (bannon-gee-ahna) is another summer and early fall amanita that appears at the same time the caesars do. Actually they tend to grow very close to each other. These mushrooms look almost just like the edible bright red caesar mushrooms so it is very important to contain your excitement and observe the difference in color on the caps and stems as they are much more yellow and pale in appearance. There are some reports on the net of people eating these but with these obscure amanita mushrooms it is better to just leave them be than to take such a big risk.
