• The big laughing mushroom. Photo: NMA archives
  • Meadow mushroom. Photo: Brett Cole Photography
  • Erin with friend foraying at Bear Creek, Washington.
  • Amanita silvicola. Photo: Erin Moore
  • At the fall show, 2017. Photo: Zachary Brown
  • Inocybe sp.: a "fiber head." Photo: Erin Moore
  • Bear's head, Hericium abietis. Photo: Erin Moore
  • Candle snuff fungus. Photo: Zachary Brown
  • Puffball dinner. Photo: Erin Moore
  • Angel wings. Photo: Erin Moore
  • Morchella snyderi from California. Photo: Richard Morrison
    Morchella snyderi from California. Photo: Richard Morrison
  • Mica caps. Photo: Zachary Brown
  • Harold Mead tabling, 2017 show. Photo: Zachary Brown
Mushroom links
Mushroom ID:

Using iNaturalist, step by step

Collecting rules:

Please follow these guidelines when collecting mushrooms for the Wild Mushroom Show. Remember that spore color is an important characteristic for identifying any mushroom: a small piece of light-weight paper, placed under a mushroom cap in the basket upon collection or at home, is hugely helpful.

General rules for collecting wild mushrooms vary considerably by location and are changing all the time. Here are the Washington State Personal Use Mushroom Harvesting Rules for 2016, published by the Puget Sound Mycological Society. If you collect on public land, double-check with the local agency office or ranger station to make sure these are current. If you collect on private land, be sure to get permission from the land owner.

Some species are restricted from collecting, usually to help conserve them. These are mostly rare species that are uncommonly found (for example see the Federally Threatened, Endangered, and Proposed Species List). Scroll down to “Species Restrictions” at the PSMS site to learn more.

Poisonings:

Amanita phalloidesGo to Contact for more information, and visit the PSMS website. The highly poisonous Amanita phalloides (mycorrhizal with trees; photo by Buck McAdoo) is now showing up as far north as Bellingham and Vancouver.

Mushroom ID:

Pantone color chart of mushroom spore colors, created by Dr. Fred Rhoades
MatchMaker: Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest, an electronic, multikey with an online version
Keys to Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest, by the Pacific Northwest Key Council
Mushrooms Commonly Found in NW Washington, Dr. Fred Rhoades’ List
North American Mycological Association, NAMA Journal and newsletters
Oregon State University Mycological Collection
Tom Volk’s Site (His was the first on the Internet!)
Mycoweb
Other links (UPDATED), courtesy Vanmyco

Opportunities:

How about becoming a mushroom chef? Today’s up-and-coming careers in the culinary arts include knowledge of mycology and mushrooms – and knowing which mushrooms are not poisonous but delectably edible.

Mushroom publications:

Mushroom the Journal
Fungi Magazine

Regional mushroom clubs:

Northwest Mushroomers Association (NMA)
Kitsap Peninsula Mycological Society (KPMS)
Olympic Peninsula Mycological Society (OPMS)
Oregon Mycological Society (OMS)
Puget Sound Mycological Society (PSMS)
Snohomish County Mycological Society (SCMS)
South Sound Mushroom Club (SSMC)
S. Vancouver Island Mycological Society (SVIMS)
Vancouver Mycological Society (VMS)
Yakima Valley Mushroom Society (YVMS)

Medicinal mushrooms:

Fungi Health, the medicinal benefits of mushrooms
Wikipedia article with useful links
Blog, in German, on psychotropic mushrooms. From a thesis by Anne Stephanos.

Russian ethnomycology book:

Mushrooms, Russia and History. (Download this rare book for free)

Video links:

The many fun ways to be a fungus
Fungus canon at 180,000 g
From the BBC, watch fungi grow
Time lapse Amanita muscaria

Weather sites:

Western Washington area forecast
Recent WA precipitation (Storm total, National Weather Service)
Recent WA Precipitation (Intellicast)