8-14-18 ( I am using voice typing so there may be a few mistakes and misrecognitions I hope you will be here with me and greet between the consonants, thank you.)

Thanks for your response, dirt_farmer.

Maybe. I wish I knew. I was thinking that they were "oyster mushrooms" (Pleurotus _____). When I shot that photo, they were right about a week old. I think that the hens and chickens or the species you described has more demarcations and is not as flashy but I will have to look that up. Although I have many mushroom books and references and color photos and of course the Internet, it is best to be absolutely sure of the identification before a person consumes these mushrooms but they are not familiar with.

I am pretty sure that they are the oyster mushrooms or Pleurotus sp..

The weather in the Northeast has been absolutely soggy, rainy, unstable tropical air and hot and humid. I know where there are some chanterelles another good mushrooms but it is just too soggy, rainy and unstable weather with a chance of lightning. So I have not gone into the woods and if you collect mushrooms you probably know that after a day or two The mushrooms become saturated with small worms and insect larvae. That is pretty annoying because if you love mushrooms you can wait all year long and Thruway wet cold winter MA Coldspring only to have the summer weather become rainy and perpetual sog.

So direct farmer, did you look up the oyster mushroom and do you think this might be that? They have gone by the wayside and I will not be consuming any of them but perhaps another time after I am sure of their identity. It is not worth any indigestion or illness to consume and mushroom of mistaken identity. But they are definitely beautiful to behold, are they not?

PS No Time to correct the miss identified voice representations or typos sorry.

Petalique, I can sort of relate. My autospell got mad cow disease,and went insane, so I deleted it, and then realized I needed to learn how to spell all over again.

Jay, you know I sympathize. Those pesky prions. Even very high temperatures don't destroy them. I will say no more. They are vindictive squirts.

Although we have a quasi -sun break in weather, everything seems to have given over to mold and fungus. There is a "fairy ring" of chanterelles nearby, but I suspect it has come and gone in this "you cannot trust what you see or read or hear" weather. I hope to inspect after the threat of lightening has past and daylight begins again.

The weather in the northeast and New England has become too soggy, even for edible mushrooms. Mold is whispering, very loudly. (Is that necessary?)

15. Any clue what these are? They are about ~1"-2" in diameter, and growing off a dead branch.

16. What about this at the base of a Live Oak tree? This mass is maybe around ~8" long or so...

17. Or these ~4" white "ears" on a small, dead stump?

The last pic is a shelf fungus also known as bracket fungus.

^ Thx!

18. Ok, and this one was found alongside a trail in a public park. It was maybe 3" in diameter and growing on some deadwood.

19. And this one was found growing on a dead tree trunk alongside a trail in a public park. It was maybe 8" in diameter?

#18 looks like polyporus arcularius as a possibility.

#19 best guess is ganoderma applanatum.

^ Interesting, thanks!!! How hard is it to get a positive ID on shrooms, BTW?

Spring Polypore (Polyporus arcularius) is antibacterial and edible but essentially unpalatable due to tough flesh.

Artist’s Conk (Ganoderma applanatum) is medicinal like all Reishi.

20. This one was found growing on a small, dead tree along a trail in a public park. The largest bodies here were about the size of deflated grapes. What is it?

jelly ear

21. This one was found on a dead long off a trail in a public park. They were around ~3.5" wide or so. What is it?

I would guess at Pluteus cervinus.

^ Thanks!!! Ok next then...

22. This volunteer is growing in a pot. It is around ~4" wide, with its gills visible through the top. What is it?

Leucocoprinus birnbaumii, aka Lepiota lutea

^ Thanks again!!!

23. This shelf fungi looking like a cracker was found growing on a log in a park. They were around ~5" wide. What is it?

Need a top side view, or perhaps in this case a bottom view.

This is a pic of Reishi I took in the woods. Its an unusual form that has two wings attached to a main long stem. I probably will not get a chance to see this kind of specimen anytime soon again.

So I have included a photo. I did not disturb the mushroom , because its nature's art at her best.

It also had no beetles attacking it which made it all that more pristine.

24. These were found growing on a roadside stump. Each was maybe ~3" wide or so. What are they?

25. Ok, these were found growing by a tree at a park. Each was maybe ~3" wide or so. What are they?

Color is very important in identifying this mushroom. If you could compare it against a paint color sample strip that has the name of the color associated with the strip that would help a lot. Take a piece of the mushroom and compare it against the strip color on your pc. I guess I should say to use glove protection. I don't think there is a issue with touching this mushroom . Just felt I should say it for c y a. I dunno.

24 ... oyster mushrooms?

25 ... ringless honey mushrooms?

Both just guesses!

Thanks..

25. Ok, these were found growing at the base of a Pecan tree at a park. They stuck out about ~2"-3" from the trunk. Is it some type of Ganoderma?

Ganoderma sessile perhaps?

I second the Ganoderma sessile. Check the basidiospores to see if they are smooth.

Does the hymenium bruise brown?

^ Thanks! I'll have to try to check that next time!

26. This white shelf fungi was found in a park. They were mostly around ~3" in diameter. Any idea what they are?

27. These shrooms about ~4" tall were found growing in a lawn. What are they?

Pretty sure they’re Chlorophyllum molybditess. Good explanation of them here:

https://foragedfoodie.blogspot.com/2015/09/identifying-most-common-poisonous.html

^ Poisonous Chlorophyllum molybdites (Green-Spored Lepiota), thanks!!! :D

28. These were found growing where a Pecan tree had just gotten cut down and its stump ground. They were maybe ~5" tall, generally. They resemble #9 & #10, or possibly Coprinus comatus or Leucocoprinus cretaceus? Any idea what they are, though?

I would like to see one of the larger specimens cut down the center. It would also be good to know what date they were found and what state and what part of the state they were found at.

^ Doh, somehow I missed this reply! Well, no chance to splice them now...but these were found in central Texas at the time of posting.

29. These mushrooms were found by a trail on a riverbank. They were about 4" balls that puffed out clouds of rusty brown spores when lightly dinged. Are they some type of Puffball?

Are the first and second pictures using the mushroom on the left the same ones or different specimens? If they are the same specimen how long was the interval between when the pictures were taken? There also is a green plant to the right of the first mushroom in the first picture. Can you give any information on what the plant is?

As far as to your question whether the mushrooms could be some kind of puffball the answer IMO, is yes that is a possibility.

^ Yes, those are all the same mushroom in those 2 pics and (I believe) were taken on the same day, just at a different angle.

The small, green plant to the right of the large mushroom is a Toothed Spurge (Euphorbia dentata).

30. These ~1.5" white, spiky, ball mushrooms were found in a field by an overpass. What are they?

Lycoperdon curtisii ??

I Agree with with the above post. Lycoperdon curtisi .

Thats an easy one. With mushrooms that are difficult and not haviing a sample to put under a scope its really difficult to give a reliable opinion. There are published books were one author got it wrong and a different author pointed it out after he was poisoned.

So if it looks like I ask a lot of questions its mostly to help rule stuff out

The plant you identified in the other post for me unfortuntely did not help as it has a wide distribution. I cant offer an opinion to the other post as it would be a guess and not an opinion.

You can try a trained educated mycologist as I have in the past, but alot of the time they get sooo many emails they cant keep up.

^ Well, I seriously appreciate all your input, whether it's any more questions or just your best stab! As you are one of the few mycologists on this site, and in general! How did you even get into shrooms, BTW?

31. Now, these ~1/2" cup-shaped mushrooms were volunteering in a residential flower bed. Are these some type of Bird's Nest Fungi (Nidulariaceae)?

How did you even get into shrooms, BTW?

==>>>

it usually starts with beer and wine.. then escalates thru mary jane.. eventually resulting in some hippy ending up face down in the forest eating whatever 'shroom' is around .. sooner or later.. you find the good one ...

ken

Thank you very much for generous comment. :) My most favorite mushroom is morels. Unfortunately were I live theirs not that many or I am just bad at finding them. I like to save some of the hamburger grease after making burgers on the grill. Then after cleaning the morels good I baste them with the grease , fire up the grille and grille them . OMG they taste just like smoked oysters times ten. Guess I got into shroomin when I would transplant them from plants that use my horticultural endeavors to use them as predictors as to how different mycelium decompose the soil to make the soil more natural to what it would be seen in nature. Tertiary decomposers ( mycelium ) seem to me by far a good natural substitute to replace agar for plants that can use spores or tissue clusters for their propagation . for example orchids and ferns propagation. I don't really don't grow orchids though as commercial growers just blow my technique to shame as my techniques are awkward and time consuming. Actually truth be know its because I'm lousy at it LOL. The picture on the far left appears to have some peridiole ( fruiting body ) in the nest. Which would be indicative of your observation and would anecdotal support your claim .

28. Here's a few more shots of these same mushrooms resprouting there back in March...

32. These "pancakes" were found on the same day (back in March) and about ~3" wide?

The first two pics look like Coprinus atramentarius

The last pic could be from the Tricholoma genus. Without a look at the stems and the underside of the cap it really is just a guess. There are plenty of look a like's it could also be.

Now that's all from a macroscopic identification. Once you get into a microscopic identification things becomes much more definitive.

BEWARE of the " I wish it was this " identification. It tricks your mind into thinking you are seeing something that is there or isn't there.

^ THANKS!!!

33. And this bright orange tree fungus (about ~4" across) was found on a fallen, dead branch on the ground in a park. Is it the parasitic, edible Lobster Mushroom (Hypomyces lactifluorum), or something else?

Lobsters don’t grow on trees, to my knowledge. They also smell like lobster…

The cheap way out is to see if it develops a fruiting body.

If it doesn't it could mean two things.

1 . It never successful got to that stage.

2. It might be a fungus that doesn't develop a conventional cap carpophore.

When it matures it will be easier to identify, unless of course this is all ready fully developed.

Really curious as to what the fungus looks like on the underside , especially the larger part in the right of the picture.

^ Thanks! But unfortunately, I have not been able to possibly return to that site yet to check out the underside...

34. But, I've been trying to find some Turkey Tail (Trametes versicolor) now...and found this candidate in a park. Not sure if it's really a polypore underneath, and if this is Turkey Tail? Each body was about ~1.5" wide and a little rubbery.

From the pics that looks like turkey tail. There are some lookalikes to this mushroom.

If you google "Totally True Turkey Tail Test" there is a much repected Mycologist that can definately nail it down for you. I could have included this as a link but not everyone wants their pages linked too, and I respect this possibility.

35. These ~2.5" orange fungi were growing on a nurse log at the park. Any idea what they are?

It may be Pycnoporus sanguineus or Pycnoporus cinnabarinus. Their range overlaps. There is a chemical test for the latter. I just couldn't find mention of a test for both. It wouldn't surprise me if both respond the same to a chemical test. Macroscopically there are differences.

I think I remember you are from the deep south and their range overlaps, especially in the southeast. Googling either one or both should supply a lot more information.

^ Thanks, hmm...I can't even tell the difference between Pycnoporus sanguineus & Pycnoporus cinnabarinus? Except maybe Pycnoporus sanguineus tends to be thinner?

36. A partial circle of these ~4.5" diameter shrooms popped up in a residential lawn after lots of rain. Any idea what these are?