Welcome to Mushroom World
Step into the fascinating world of mushrooms with Mushroom World – your go-to resource for fungi information. Our site offers clear information and beautiful images of mushrooms.
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.
Since there are thousands of known species of mushrooms, we have limited our database to the most common ones. New species are also continuously added to the site.
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 Lactifluus piperatus (Peppery Milkcap). It grows in North America and Europe.
Dimensions: Cap 6-16 cm diameter, stem 3-7 cm tall * 2 cm thick
Description:
Lactifluus piperatus, also known as Lactarius piperatus and Peppery Milkcap is a medium-sized agaric with a white cap that bleeds whitish peppery-tasting milk when cut or damaged. The mushroom grows scattered or grouped on soil in deciduous woods from summer and autumn and into early winter.
Cap creamy-white in colour, convex to flat or depressed on disc. Surface smooth or wrinkled in age or were damaged, becoming spotted or smudged with dingy yellow-brown. The flesh is white, thick, hard and sometimes discolouring yellowish with age. Gills decurrent, particularly crowded and narrow, white at first, then pale yellowish, often forked one or more times. The gills exude a white milk when damaged. Stem white in colour, thick and cylindrical, sometimes tapering towards the base and without a ring. Spore print white.
Microscopic Features: The spores are ellipsoidal, measuring 8-9 x 6-7µm. They have a textured surface with a few small warts and narrow ridges, reaching a height of 0.5µm. The ridges may form some incomplete cross-connections, resulting in a partially formed network.
Lactarius piperatus on the First Nature Web site.
Lactarius piperatus on the MushroomExpert.Com Web site.
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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