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 Chlorophyllum molybdites (The Vomiter). It grows in North America and Europe.
Dimensions: Cap 10-22 cm diameter; stem 8-20 cm tall * 1.5-3 cm diameter
Description:
Chlorophyllum molybdites, also known as The Vomiter or False parasol, is a large agaric with a white hat that has coarse brownish scales. It grows in a variety of habitats, including grassy areas, lawns, meadows, and woodlands, often forming large fairy rings in summer and fall. The mushroom is commonly confused with the Parasol Mushroom, the Shaggy Parasol, or the Shaggy Mane.
Cap convex to bell-shaped and has a slightly incurved margin when young, expanding to a broadly convex shape as it matures. The surface is first covered by a thin layer of shiny, pale pinkish-buff volva tissue that soon cracks into scales, exposing the white cap surface. The scales are brown to pinkish-brown or tan, either uplifted or flat, and usually concentrated near the centre. The flesh is thick, and white throughout. Gills close, broad, free and remote from the stem, pale yellowish but becoming greyish green to brownish green as the spores mature. Stem slender, enlarged towards the base, white to brownish and bears a double-edged ring that is white at first but becomes brown and scaly on the underside. Spore print dull grayish green.
Microscopic Features: The spores measure 9-13 x 6-9 µm and have an amygdaliform to ellipsoid shape. They are smooth and slightly truncated at one end, featuring a small 1 µm pore. The spores have thick walls and appear hyaline (colourless) to faintly greenish in KOH (potassium hydroxide). Additionally, they exhibit dextrinoid properties.
Chlorophyllum molybdites on the MushroomExpert.Com Web site.
Identifying the Most Common Poisonous Mushroom: Chlorophyllum molybdites on the Foraged Foodie Web site.
The seventh photo is by Sylvia 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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