Cantherellus subalbidus (White Chanterelle) and Cantharellus formosus (Pacific Golden Chanterelle)

Mike Orr's video from the 23rd motivated me to get in the vehicle and drive to some spots where I have found Chanterelles in the past. The first 1/2 hour was disappointing, and then I stumbled upon a patch of tinny golden Chanterelles.

Interestingly there was evidence that someone else had been there before me -- I could see the neatly cut stipes of larger mushrooms beside the small ones I found. I wandered around in a wider circle, went up the hill a ways, found nothing, so circled back and proceeded downhill from where I had found the small ones. Then I came across a patch of White Chanterelles and picked a bag full.

I walked quite a while after that but did not find another patch.

I did, to my great joy, find a red legged frog. Quite unexpected in the forest. And she sat still so I could take some photos with my iPhone.

After leaving her to her -- I'm not sure what -- burying herself in the mud for the winter??? I went down the road to another place I have had luck in the past and found one small Golden Chanterelle in well over an hour of tramping through the wet salal and deep woods.

It was a lovely spot with the sun streaming through the trees and just before I gave up I came around a big old stump and found this:

The fungus had an unpleasant smell.

 But was impressive in heft and detail.

 A little further on I found some polypores:

I'm going to guess that this is Coltricia perennis (Tiger's Eye). There were several lovely speciments:

More on Gymnopus dryophilus (with a little Allotropa virgata for interest)

Took a video today of a patch of Gymnopus dryophilus:

I walked for over 8 kilometers today and all I saw were these mushrooms in several fairly large patches. Interestingly the Wikipedia entry for this mushroom says, "often seen when there are few other fungi in evidence." That would seem to describe my walk today. I did, however, see this:

Allotropa vigata??

I believe this is the remains of "candystick" which is an indicator species for Matsutake or Pine Mushroom (Tricholoma magnivelare).

"Allotropa virgata lacks chlorophyll, it obtains nutrients from other vascular plants through a mycorrhizal (fungal) association. Matsutake mushroom mycelium are reported as the mycorrhizal associate." -- http://fieldguide.mt.gov/detail_PDMON01010.aspx

So, I will be checking this spot over the next two months to see if I find a Matsutake or not.

Gymnopus dryophilus 76%

I collected a sample and did a spore print overnight. Then I ran all the variables through Matchmaker. it came up with only one option: Gymnopus dryophilus, or common Collybia.

Here is the spore print:

I've interpreted this as cream, pale yellow, yellow-brown, or orange brown. The photos doesn't really look like it does with the naked eye. I would say it is more cream than anything.

Matchmaker is a very interesting and complex program. I can't believe all the variables. The algorithms must be "gnarly dude."

It is a nice looking fungus, with a pleasant fungusy smell.

When I use the little option in Matchmaker for reducing the percentage match it gives me other choices.

1. Lepista inversa*  63%
2. Paxillus involutus*  61%
3. Gymnopus confluens*  61%
4. Cortinarius semisanguineus*  61%
5. Clitocybe albirhiza*  61%

Of these, Lepista inversa and Cortinarius semisanguineus also look like good candidates. Except that my specimen does not have "decurrent gills that become cap-colored." Well, they are cap-colored, but not decurrent (extending down the stem below the point of attachment).

Cortinarius semisanguineus looks more like my specimen in some ways but mine is probably not as brown and with a thinner stipe, and definitely not red to brown spores.

So, based on the information I was able to enter, this is probably Gymnopus dryophilus. It sure smells nice, but it will take a few more years of learning about identification before I will even consider eating one!

Match Maker

Downloaded Matchmaker from the Pacific Northwest Key Council. Direct link to it here: http://s158336089.onlinehome.us/Ian/

Most likely candidate from running Matchmaker for yesterday's mushroom: Laccaria laccata.

But the wavy edges and general look is not right. I guess I will collect a specimen and do a spore print.

Testing 1, 2, 3,

While out on my walk today I was trying to remember when the mushrooms started to appear last year, and I couldn't remember. Interestingly I was listening to an audiobook by Charles Darwin (Origin of Species) in which he talks about his careful record keeping with pigeons.I guess I was inspired.

I didn't have my camera, but I did have my iPhone, so I took photos of the only mushrooms I could find during my walk. There were three types. Fir cone mushrooms, a small brown mushroom growing on the ground, and a slightly larger one growing on a tree.

I think I will just upload the raw photos from the phone without editing them in order to keep this simple. I will then attempt to identify them first with the Fungus app I purchased for my iPhone, and then see if the books I have confirm this.

Strobilurus trullisatus -- Fircone Cap

Using the key on my cellphone (Fungi) for the first time:

1. gills
2. cap: depressed
3. attachment: adnexed
4. stipe: bare
5. ecology: any

Gave three choices: Entoloma abortivum, Russula beturlarum, Russula sardonia.

Only the Entoloma abortivum seems close so I went to the books. Doesn't seem to occur in the Northwest. changed the attachment to free, but still nothing promising.

Browsed J. Duane Sept Common Mushrooms of the Northwest. Most likely Cortinarius cinnamomeus -- Cinnamon Cortinarius.

Went back to the phone and played around. Clearly I need to memorize the different attachments.  Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest by Steve Trudell and Joe Ammirati use spore prints as a crucial step in identification. So I guess I will have to gather one and do a spore print.