Fungi of The Land Between
Backyard Community Science Program
Fungi are very important for recycling nutrients in ecosystems. They produce beautiful fruiting bodies that vary in many shapes and colours. The structures that we see are only the reproductive parts of fungi, a temporary representation of their hidden mycelium network. Below are lists of highlighted species that you can observe in the Land Between each season. This is not a comprehensive list, but will help you identify some common species to get started!
PLEASE NOTE: the Summer, Autumn and Winter pages are currently unavailable because they are under construction.
How can I create habitat for fungi?
You can support fungi habitat by increasing the biodiversity of your property. A landscape with various elements, such as mulch, grass, wood chips, leaf litter, and flowerbeds will encourage a greater variety of fungi. Most fungi are decomposers, and will break down the organic matter in animal feces, compost piles, and tree stumps into healthy soil. By having a variety of native plants on your property, you can promote fungi that will form beneficial relationships with your plants and help them survive!
Spring Fungi
Spring is an exciting time for all beings in the Land Between! The longer and warmer days means that the snow starts to melt and many species are emerging from their winter strongholds. Search through the gallery of images below and click the picture to find out more information! Take a look to see if you recognize anyone!
Activity Sheets
Download and print our activity sheets to have some extra fun learning about and searching for fungi during your bioblitz!
Featured Spring Fungi: species you are likely to see!
Black Morel
Dryad's Saddle
False Morel
Scarlet Elfcup
Mica Cap
Tinder Fungus
Northern Red Belt
Yellow Morel
More information about our featured species
Black Morel
(Elata clade)
Appearance: Black morels have conical, deely-pitted caps that are honeycomb-like. They are dark in colour, ranging from brown to black with dark ridges separating the pits. Their stems are white to pale brown, with caps that are fully attached. They are hollow on the inside when cut open.
Habitat: Look for these mushrooms in sandy woodlands, in coniferous forests near pine and fir trees. They are more abundant in recently disturbed areas, including conifer forests where there have been recent fires.
Fruiting time: Black morel mushrooms only grow in the spring, typically earlier in the season than Yellow morels. Search for them from late April–June.
Fun Facts: Morels grow together with trees in symbiosis. They form a network that stays underground year after year. This is why you may find new morels in the same spots you found them the year before! Black morels are edible, however we do not recommend eating them. They can cause allergic reactions and misidentification could be deadly!
False Morel
(Gyromitra esculenta)
Appearance: The appearance of False morels is quite different to True morels, as they do not have hollow stems or pitted caps. Instead, they have wrinkled caps with brain-like folds that are red/brown or maroon coloured and become darker with age. The caps range from 3-12 cm wide and attach to the pale stalk at many points.
Habitat: False morels get their name from growing in similar locations as True morels, around the same time. Search for them on forest floors, primarily growing under conifers.
Fruiting time: These mushrooms grow in the spring but can dry up and last several months. Look for them from late April–June, with most growing in May.
Fun Fact: This mushroom is poisonous and can be deadly! It contains a chemical that when ingested, turns into the exact same chemical that is used in rocket fuel, monomethylhydrazine (MMH).
Mica Cap
(Coprinellus micaceus)
Appearance: These mushrooms are small, with stems that are 2-8 cm long and caps that are 2-5 cm across. They are initially egg-shaped, expanding into a bell-shape with lined margins as they age. The colour of the cap varies, typically honey-brown or amber. The gills are attached to the stalks, starting as a pale colour and turning darker as the mushrooms grow. They are covered with shiny, mica-like particles until washed off with rain.
Habitat: The mushrooms grow in clusters on decaying wood. Look for them near stumps and in the grass where wood may be buried or roots are rotting underneath the soil. They are typically found in urban areas.
Fruiting time: They begin growing in the late spring until the early fall (May–October).
Fun Fact: Collected mushroom caps will autodigest into a black liquid full of spores. This mixture can be made into a black ink!
Northern Red Belt
(Fomitopsis mounceae)
Appearance: This shelf fungus is typically fan or hoof-shaped with distinct red or brown grooves. It usually has a reddish band near the margin and can be brown or black toward the point of attachment when mature. The thick margin is white or yellow and the underside is cream coloured and covered with pores. The structure is tough and becomes bumpy with age, sometimes having a sticky coating.They can grow up to 45 cm wide.
Habitat: These structures grow alone or in groups. They are more commonly growing on the side of dying trees, but you can also find them on live trees. They favour coniferous trees but will also grow on hardwoods such as birch and aspen.
Fruiting time: These structures can be found on trees year-round, developing a new tube layer each growing season.
Fun Fact: This fungus was recently recognized as a new distinct species in 2019, different from the Red-belted conk (Fomitopsis pinicola). It was named after Irene Mounce, a pioneering Canadian mycologist.
Dryad's Saddle
(Cerioporus squamosus)
Appearance: The mushroom has a short, thick stalk that is white when young and matures to black. The kidney-shaped cap is large (5-30 cm) and yellow-brown, with flattened black or brown scales. The depression at the centre of the cap gives it a saddle shape, which turns reddish black in the fall. The underside of the cap is white and sponge-like with wide pores.
Habitat: They can be found growing alone or in clusters on the sides of living deciduous trees or on stumps and logs. Look out for these large mushrooms on silver maple, box elder, and elm trees.
Fruiting time: This annual mushroom first appears in the late spring and can be seen until early fall, from May–November.
Fun Fact: This fungus is saprobic, decomposing wood from trees that are already dead. It can also be parasitic, growing on living trees and causing the heartwood to become spongy from white rot.
Scarlet Elfcup
(Sarcoscypha austriaca)
Appearance: This mushroom is cup or saucer shaped (2-6 cm across), with a bright red colour on the inside. The outside is white, pink, or orange coloured, with a downy appearance from tiny white hairs. The stem is very short and thin.
Habitat: Look for these growing on hardwood sticks in moist areas on the forest floor. You may find them partially or fully buried under leaf litter or soil.
Fruiting time: These mushrooms will only be found in the spring, around March to May.
Fun Fact: By blowing on a mature mushroom and waiting a few seconds, the change in temperature triggers it to shoot out a cloud of spores, visible to the naked eye. It is also possible to hear a quiet puffing sound as the spores are released.
Tinder Fungus
(Fomes fomentarius)
Appearance: This fungus is very large, ranging from 5-45 cm across and is typically shaped like a horse’s hoof. The upper surface is woody and tough, with a ridged texture and banded colouring that is grey to black or brown. The underside is brown or grey and is covered with many tiny round pores.
Habitat: Find these structures growing on the sides of trees that are standing or have fallen. Switching from a parasite to a decomposer, the fungus stays living on trees after they die. They can be found on many different types of trees, but are more common on birch and beech trees.
Fruiting time: This fungus can be found year-round. It lasts several years and takes a really long time to grow, adding a new growth ring each year.
Fun Fact: This fungus can be processed into Amadou and used as tinder to start a fire. Amadou is a fibre and can also be used to make clothing.
Yellow Morel
(Esculenta clade)
Appearance: These mushrooms have cone-shaped caps that are honeycomb-like, with irregularly shaped pits all over. The caps range in colour from white/grey to yellow/brown, with paler ridges separating the pits. The caps are attached to the white stems directly and are hollow on the inside when cut open. The mushrooms are usually 10-15 cm tall.
Habitat: Search in sandy woodlands, near deciduous trees such as oak, ash, aspen, poplar, apple, and dying elm trees. They also grow in areas that have been recently disturbed. Look for these mushrooms hiding under leaf litter with the top of their cap poking up. If you find one mushroom, you are likely to find more growing within 6 metres.
Fruiting time: Morels are only found in the spring, usually from May–June. They typically appear after a heavy rainfall breaking a dry spell, and require soil temperatures to be at 10°C for five days.
Fun Fact: Yellow morels are one of the most desired edible mushrooms in the Great Lakes region. Many people forage for morels, but can only eat them if they’re cooked correctly and the identification is certain. We do not recommend eating any fungi, since some people have allergic reactions and it is easy to confuse them with similar deadly mushrooms!