Welcome to Mushroom World

Step into the fascinating world of mushrooms with Mushroom World - your go-to resource for fungi information. Our site is a comprehensive resource offering information and stunning 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 tried to limit those we list to the most common ones. New species are also continuously added to the site.

So come on in 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.

Below is an overview of the main features and functionalities of our site.

Browse the database

You can browse the database from the alphabetical list or search the database based on mushroom names or properties.

Help identify a mushroom

If you know the characteristics of a mushroom but need help identifying it, try using our mushroom identification helper. It is a tool designed to assist you in identifying mushrooms that you may come across. If you're new to mushroom identification, be sure to check out our mushroom identification basics guide for an easy introduction to key features and terminology.

Identification Quiz

We have also created a quiz where you can test your fungi identification knowledge. You can repeat the quiz as many times as you want, each time with new questions.

Upload mushroom pictures

If you have pictures of mushrooms you would like to have included on our site, please use the upload form to upload these files and we will see if we can include them.

Today's Mushroom

Today's mushroom is Pholiota squarrosa (Dry Scaly Pholiota). It grows in North America, Europe.

Dimensions: Cap 3-12 cm diameter, stem 5-12 cm tall * 1-1.5 cm thick

Description: Pholiota squarrosa, also known as Dry Scaly Pholiota, has a yellowish-brown large hat that is covered with brown scales. The gills are light yellow to brown. The foot is the same colour as the hat and protruding scales. The mushroom grows in small or large clumps on hardwood, often at the base of live or dead hardwoods.

Cap first bell-shaped to rounded and later somewhat flattened, yellowish-brown to tawny in older specimens. The scales on the cap are yellowish to tawny and recurved. Flesh pallid yellow and firm. Gills crowded closely together, attached to the stem or beginning to run down it. When young, they are whitish to yellowish, but as they mature, they turn greenish yellow and eventually rusty brown. Initially, the gills are covered by a partial veil. Stem coloured as cap above, becoming tinged rust towards the base, more or less equal or tapering downwards, scaly as the cap. The ring is ragged and almost zone-like. The upper section of the stem above the ring is paler and smooth. Spore print rusty brown.

Microscopic Features: The spores are ellipsoidal, smooth, 5.5-9 x 3.5-5μm in size with an apical germ pore.

Pholiota squarrosa on the Nature First Web site.
Pholiota squarrosa on the MushroomExpert.Com Web site.

This site contains no information about the edibility or toxicity of the mushroom.

If you are interested in this mushroom, look it up in our database. You can find more detailed pictures there.

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.