January 7, 2024
Mushroom Identification…not as simple as one might think.
I have prepared this post for two reasons:
1. I love mushrooms so when I see such beauties I get butterflies, and
2. to show how identifying mushrooms can be misleading unless done with caution.
1st picture (featured image) is of some mushrooms, the 1€ coin is for size comparison (I’m not that wealthy!).
2nd picture shows a comparison of the stems of the two big mushrooms.
3rd picture is of one of the mushrooms with DECURRENT gills.
4th picture is of the other mushrooms with ADNATE gills but since the specimen is very mature, they look like decurrent.
In fact, the the pictures are of only 2 varieties of mushrooms! The one with decurrent gills is a Pleurots eryingee while all the others are specimen of Hypsizigus tessellatus.
In Autumn it is quite common to find posts of people asking about edibility and there are a variety of people replying; not all really know what they are saying.
Conclusions:
a. The cap color is only slightly relevant since it depends on the PH of the substrate, the temperature and the light exposure. It is not a determining factor. In fact, the color of the gills is a far more reliable feature even though it also varies through maturity.
b. The hollow stem on the large Hypsizigus is not a species feature but has happened only because the mushroom has grown very big.
c. In mushrooms, size does not matter.
d. The Pleurotus in the picture is the local “tal-Ferli” variety but it grew nowhere close to a giant fennel; it grew in a kit.
e. The identity of a mushroom can only be decided by multiple features, not by just one. Do not trust anyone unless they are an expert (and please note, I am not).
