FIRST THINGS FIRST! If you are planning on consuming wild foraged mushrooms, you must do the following:
​
-
Accurately identify your mushrooms. This is not a simple task of comparing photos. Evaluate your mushroom carefully, read morphological descriptions of all possible species, and be aware of the toxicity of lookalikes. Get as many second opinions as you can from other mushroom hunters, by uploading photos to our iNat project, or emailing our identification team.
-
Only eat fresh mushrooms. Don't let the excitement of finding edible mushrooms overshadow the fact that you would not be buying rotten produce if you saw it at the store. If it looks, feel, or especially smells anything other than fresh, leave it in the forest. Note that frost can negatively affect the quality of fresh mushrooms as well.
-
Be aware of anthropogenic chemicals. Foraging in urban areas may mean that your mushrooms have absorbed toxins from the soil, air, or treated wood. Avoid consuming mushrooms from areas that have been treated by herbicides or pesticides, near busy roads, or near dump sites.
-
Thoroughly cook your mushrooms. Not only are raw mushrooms indigestible to humans, heat can eliminate harmful toxins in mushrooms making them only non-toxic when cooked. Perhaps you know this rule with morels, but it also applies to the agarics you buy at the store! It's important to note that not all toxins can be eliminated through cooking.
-
When trying a mushroom for the first time:
-
Only consume 2 tsp of ​your cooked mushroom to about monitor for symptoms for 24–72 hrs. It is wise to save a sample of the mushroom as well.
-
Avoid alcohol. If you end up having an allergy to the species, alcohol may produce worsened symptoms. Note that certain Coprinus (Inky Cap) species should never be consumed with alcohol.
-
Avoid sharing with people with susceptible to sickness. Young children, older folk, and people who simply do not want to try wild mushrooms (fear can make you sick, too!) may be more vulnerable to adverse reactions.
-
RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
North American Mycological Association
MSU is proud to be a NAMA-affiliated club.
The North American Mycological Association (NAMA) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit
organization of professional and amateur mycologists with over 90 affiliated mycological
societies in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
NAMA is committed and dedicated to the promotion of scientific and educational activities
related to fungi, supporting the protection of natural areas and their biological integrity, and
advocating for the sustainable use of mushrooms as a resource and endorses responsible mushroom
collecting that does not harm the fungi or their habitats.
-
Conferences — Holds an annual conference/foray in different parts of North America, often with short courses in mycology, always with lectures by professional mycologists.
-
Forays — Organizes gatherings where learning and social time are encouraged.Regional
View Bylaws for the North American Mycological Association
-
Newsletter — Publishes The Mycophile, which gives mycological news and reports, notices of events of interest to members, reviews of recent books, and poison information.
-
Journal — Publishes McIlvainea, a peer-reviewed journal, with scientific papers on all aspects of fungi, toxicology reports, and topics of general interest – with articles by leading professional and amateur mycologists.
-
Photo Contest — Conducts an annual photo contest and publishes the results.
-
Educational Programs — Provides educational resources to adults and youth(K-12), which includes lesson plans, webinars, and advice on teaching mycology.
-
Scholarship — NAMA funds an annual fellowship with the Mycological Society of America to promising graduate students in mycology.
-
Speakers Bureau — Maintains a list of over 50 speakers who are available to give programs for affiliated clubs.
-
Toxicology — Provides expertise in mushroom poisoning information on the web and through a group of identifiers for doctors and veterinarians.
-
Discussion groups — Hosts a discussion group for members and can organize more specialized groups as needed.
​
Join here. MSU members get $5 off their annual membership fee.
regional field guides
The Essential Guide to Rocky Mountain Mushrooms by Habitat​​
by Cathy Cripps, Vera Evenson, Michael Kuo​​
​
Mushrooms of Utah
by Don Johnston
​
CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT. We will let you know when it becomes available again.
local community ID help
You can always contact our ID team for help with identification, however, there are other ways to get secondary opinions:
Northern Utah Funga iNaturalist Project
created and monitored by MSU
​
​Though the app uses AI photo recognition alongside geological data to suggest an initial identification, the real power of this platform is that is used regularly by both academic and amateur mycologists can evaluate data and suggest identifications for others' observations.
​
Uploading your observations into iNat is the quickest and most accessible way to get valid species suggestions from pro identifiers. Adding your observations to our project heightens your chances of a quick identification, as MSU identifiers regularly check the project for new observations.
Mushrooms of Utah Facebook Group
created by Don Johnston (passed), administrated by Maleah Bliss, and moderated by Jaycie Thompson.
​
Mushrooms of Utah is dedicated to the amateur mushroom collector who may wish to eat some of the mushrooms you’ve found. Identifiers attempt to inform participants on various aspects of toxicity, and in some cases, will describe possible effects and let you make the choice whether or not to eat a particular mushroom. Bear in mind, there is no rule of thumb to tell a poisonous mushroom from an edible one. In no case will a moderator indicate a mushroom is edible if there are any known risks to health. You must take public advice from such groups critically and be confident in the specific identity of any mushroom before eating it.
​
Please note that we do NOT own and no longer monitor this Facebook page. Our society's Facebook page is not an open forum.
member art
Metal Casted Mushrooms
by Sam Shrout
​
Beautiful bronze and aluminum sculptures casted from real mushroom foraged right here in the Rocky Mountains!​
​
Fungi Fancy Coloring Book
by Alison Neville
Five Star Rated-24 single sided coloring pages-matte-cover which can also be colored! Highly detailed and great for meditation and relaxation.
Learn Mushroom identification the fun way 8.5"x 11" page size.
​
Self-published on Amazon, order here.
Are you a local mushroom artist in the society? Let us know and we'll showcase your work here!
local community organizations
The Divine Assembly
​
"The Divine Assembly (TDA) is a community of spiritual seekers who individually commune with the Divine through prayer, meditation, ceremony, and our sacrament of psilocybin mushrooms. Assembly members support and strengthen each other through ceremony and integration. If you’d like support or some companionship on the journey, we’re here. We hope that together we can seek the Divine and help each other better learn to respect ourselves, others, and the Divine."​
​
Visit their website to join, get info on gatherings, and to purchase grow kits.
Utah Fungi Fest​
organized and sponsered by Wholesun Wellness
​​
"We believe in the power of fungi to contribute to the health of the planet and all beings that live here. To promote the use of mushrooms as sustainable resources, we introduce leaders, citizens, and business owners to fungi’s diverse ability to impact ecosystem remediation, permaculture, culinary practices, and personal health. By providing education from expert speakers and educators, we work to inspire environmental stewardship using the ancient wisdom of fungi."
​
Follow their instagram to stay in the loop for the next conference!
business sponsorships/ membership benefits
Redwood Mushroom Supply
RMS ​sells everything you need to cultivate at home and offers MSU members 20% off (with 5% donated back to MSU) on all products. Use this link or code MA-UTAH for the discount. ​