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 Kuehneromyces mutabilis (Sheathed Woodtuft). It grows in North America, Europe.
Dimensions: Cap 3-6 cm diameter, stem 3-8 cm tall * 0.5-1 cm thick
Description:
Kuehneromyces mutabilis, also known as Sheathed Woodtuft, is a medium-sized agaric that has an umbonate honey-brown to yellow hat, which dries from the centre, often producing a two-tone effect. It also has gills that are pale ochre at first and become cinnamon as the spores mature and a ring on the stem. It grows clustered on stumps and logs of broad-leaf trees, favouring birch. The mushroom can easily be confused with Galerina marginata (Deadly Galerina).
Cap convex, becoming broadly convex or nearly flat, and hygrophanous which means it is changing colour as it dries out and fading from tawny to orangish brown to yellowish or brownish (often passing through a two-toned stage). The cap flesh is pale tan, quite thin and unchanging when sliced. Gills adnate (broadly attached to the stem) and crowded, whitish to pale tan when young, becoming cinnamon brown as the spores mature. Stem pale and smooth above the fairly persistent stem ring, fibrous, scaly and dark tan below, graduating to almost black at the base. Spore print cinnamon brown.
Microscopic Features: The spores of the mushroom are broadly ellipsoidal, and smooth, measuring approximately 5.5-7.5 x 4-5µm. They possess an apical germ pore.
Similar species include Galerina marginata (Deadly Galerina).
Kuehneromyces mutabilis on the First Nature Web site.
Kuehneromyces mutabilis 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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