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 Cortinarius sanguineus (Bloodred Webcap). It grows in Europe, North America.
Dimensions: Cap 2-5 cm diameter, stem 3-6 cm tall * 0.3-0.8 cm thick
Description:
Cortinarius sanguineus, commonly called the Blood-red Webcap, is a small to medium-sized mushroom with a vivid crimson to dark blood-red cap, gills, and stem. It is most often found in coniferous forests, particularly among spruces and pines, and is well known as a traditional dye mushroom.
Cap small to medium, at first convex or bell-shaped, later broadly convex to almost flat, sometimes with a low umbo. The surface is dry, silky to finely fibrous, bright blood-red to dark crimson, often with radiating fibrils. The margin is not lined. The flesh is pale pinkish to purplish-red and does not change when cut. Gills broadly attached and fairly close, at first vivid blood-red, later turning cinnamon to rusty red as the spores mature. Short gills are frequent. In young specimens they are covered by a red cortina. Stem cylindrical and sometimes slightly swollen at the base, dry and silky, coloured like the cap or slightly paler towards the base, and may occasionally show a rusty ring zone. The basal mycelium is reddish. Spore print rusty brown.
Microscopic Features: Spores ellipsoidal with a rough surface, measuring 7–9 × 4–6 µm.
Cortinarius sanguineus on the First Nature Web site.
Cortinarius sanguineus 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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