When the mornings turn damp and cool, you may notice clusters of brown mushrooms “crying” along cemetery paths or in park lawns. These somber fruit bodies belong to Lacrymaria lacrymabunda, aptly nicknamed the Weeping Widow for the black, watery droplets that bead...
With its swirling rosettes of smoky brown caps and its reputation as a prized edible, Grifola frondosa is one of North America’s most recognizable polypores. Commonly called the Hen‑of‑the‑woods or Maitake, this fungus grows in dense, overlapping clusters at the...
When golden clusters of mushrooms erupt around tree bases in late summer, they aren’t just a pretty sight, they’re a sign of Armillaria at work. Known collectively as honey mushrooms, these fungi form tight bunches of caps and stems that fuse at their base. The...
The vibrant orange “lobster” that peeks through forest duff and garden mulch isn’t a crustacean at all but a parasitic fungus: Hypomyces lactifluorum. By colonizing the fruit bodies of certain Russula and Lactarius species, it transforms them into solid, meaty morsels...
Unlike most boletes that bear pores, the Gilled Bolete sports true lamellae, pale to golden yellow “gills” that run down its stem. Phylloporus rhodoxanthus forms mycorrhizal partnerships with oak and beech, and its tender, nutty flesh makes it a tasty edible when...
When patches of bright red, star-like fungi erupt from mulch beds and forest floors, few can ignore the striking sight and pungent scent of Aseroe rubra, commonly called the Anemone Stinkhorn. With its radiating arms and olive-green, slimy spore mass, this fungus...
