Welcome to Mushroom World
Step into the enchanting world of fungi with Mushroom World – your trusted companion for learning about mushrooms.
Whether you're a curious beginner or a seasoned nature enthusiast, our site provides clear, accessible information and beautiful images to help you better understand and appreciate the mushrooms you encounter.
If you're curious about what fungi actually are, and how they differ from plants and animals, be sure to visit our what are fungi? page for an easy-to-understand explanation.
With thousands of mushroom species known to science, we've chosen to focus on the most common and easily recognisable ones. Each entry includes helpful descriptions, identification tips, and high-quality images, and we’re always working to expand our collection with new species and updated content.
Come and explore the wonders of mushrooms with us. We hope you find our site informative, inspiring, and a valuable resource on your journey of mushroom discovery.
What you can do on Mushroom World
Browse the database
Explore mushrooms from the alphabetical list or search by name or properties.
Identify a mushroom
Know some characteristics but not the name? Use our mushroom identification helper to narrow it down.
New to identification? Start with identification basics.
Test your knowledge
Try our identification quiz and see how many mushrooms you recognise. Each run gives you new questions.
Upload your photos
Have good mushroom photos to share? Use the upload form and we will see if we can include them on the site.
Today's Mushroom
A quick highlight from our database
Today's mushroom is Galerina marginata (Deadly Galerina). It grows in Europe, North America, Asia and Australia.
Dimensions: Cap 2.5-6.5 cm diameter, stem 3-9 cm tall * 0.3-0.8 cm diameter
Description:
Galerina marginata, also known as Deadly Galerina or Funeral Bell, is a small agaric with a yellowish tan, sticky cap, similarly coloured as the gills and a ring on the stem. It grows in clusters on stumps and logs of broad-leaf trees.
Cap starts convex, sometimes broadly conical, and has edges (margins) that are curved in against the gills. It becomes later broadly convex and then flattened, sometimes developing a central elevation or umbo. The colour is honey yellow with an orangish tint, gradually transitioning to a cinnamon to brownish-orange shade. As it dries out, the colour often fades noticeably, resulting in a two-toned appearance. In its early stages, the margin may have whitish veil remnants, but it usually becomes bare and finely lined as it matures. Gills typically narrow and crowded, with a broadly adnate to nearly decurrent attachment to the stem and convex edges. They are pallid brown when young, becoming rusty brown or brownish as the spores mature. Stem more or less equal or slightly enlarged downward. The membranous ring is located on the upper half of the stem near the cap but may be sloughed off and missing in older specimens. The fragile stems are often curved. Buff at the apex and browner towards the base and usually longitudinally fibrilose. The basal mycelium is white. Spore print rusty brown.
Microscopic Features: The spores are broadly ellipsoidal, measuring 8-10 by 5-6µm, and they have a textured surface with small warts.
Galerina marginata on the First Nature web site.
Galerina marginata on the mykoweb.com web site.
Galerina marginata on the MushroomExpert.Com web site.
The third photo is by Huafang and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.
If you are interested in this mushroom, look it up in our database for more detailed photographs and additional information.
Many mushrooms are poisonous, and some can be lethally toxic. Distinguishing between edible and poisonous mushrooms can be very challenging. Therefore, we strongly advise against consuming wild mushrooms. This website does not contain any information about the edibility or toxicity of mushrooms.
Although efforts have been made to ensure accuracy on this website, the information may contain errors and omissions. Therefore, all content provided is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be relied upon or used as a basis for consuming any plants or mushrooms.
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