When Science Across NC created Mushroom Quest to encourage mushroom observations from Sept 23-26, I decided it was time to get really into mushrooms, haha! Back in Biology 2, my professor tasked us with going to out to find mushrooms from each of the major groups so I had already had a basic familiarity with them.
Armed with A Field Guide to Mushrooms of the Carolinas by Bessette, Bessette, and Hopping, I started practicing identifying almost every mushroom I come across, even the frustrating brittlegills and those darn blue-staining boletes. One day I'd love to get a microscope with a camera to upload spore pictures... One day.
I've learned there are many puffballs of different shapes and that most white fairy rings I see are poisonous green-spored parasols.
Puffballs were my favorite until I finally found a Lactarius mushroom! I've always loved watching videos of people nicking the gills to see the latex bead up
Observations of fungi I've stumbled across
Edited to add: As I learn, I’m mostly using Michael Kuo’s MushroomExpert website and the book A Field Guide to Mushrooms of the Carolinas by Bessette, Bessette, and Hopping. When I’m referencing information to one of those sources in my own notes of observations I’ll put (Kuo) or (BBH) to indicate where I got the info from
dark spores left on cap underneath
multiple fruiting bodies from one fairy ring
very flaky scales covering them. spores look dark brown. two mature bodies found ten feet apart
very dark brown gleba
No veil or volva. Cap too mature to leave spore print. Stem very strongly attached to cap
practicing spore prints for future mushroom IDs
Found solitary in wood chips.
very wet/slimy upon cutting cap from stipe (which is why I considered Suillus spp.)
fine hairs on cap
inside of stipe had light whitish flesh
spore print: white
(Writing down all my observations and thoughts to reference next time I find a similar mushroom)
Stained dark blue the moment the stipe is removed from the cap which means it can’t be Baorangia bicolor, which bruises slowly
Scent indeterminate (Curry= Boletus sensibilis, mild/citrusy= Pulchroboletus rubrictrinus)
spore print was green (grayish olive= B. sensibilis, olive brown= P. rubrictrinus)
did not taste (mild/acidic = P. rubrictrinus)
ETA
KOH stained cap yellow, pores dark brownish black
Spore print was green-blue so I think the paper was stained blue from the mushroom
Pores seem to turn brown as they age
Cap flesh slow to bruise blue
Also considering Boletus speciosus
Beads of amber liquid appeared on cap and gills
Couldn’t get a spore print
They truly look like potatoes
Amazing how only one of the cluster was completely overtaken.
I brought back one of the unaffected mushrooms in the cluster and the next day I noticed the hypomyces growing on that one, too
found in leaf litter/ pine needle mulch
hollow stem
found in leaf litter
white spore print
Comments
Add a Comment