A new species found by the club - Chromosera loreleiae
Luaren Ré photographing the new species in the field
The mushroom world has been introduced to a new mushroom specie name with some roots in the PNW and with a SSMC sequencing contribution. With a yell of excitement, Sadie Hickey from SSMC found this mushroom while attending the Key Council meeting near Mt Adams in 2019. The new name has just now been formally introduced, a name also with PNW connections. The mushroom was named in honor of Lorelei Norvell an extremely well respected mycologist working much of her career in the PNW. Lorelei Norvell was especially interested in Phaeocollybia and is author of Phaeocollybia of the Pacific Northwest North America. Lorelei interest was very broad though and included work with Scott Redhead and Joe Ammirati on the Chromosera genus.
Lorelei and Sadie were both attending the Key Council when Sadie made the collection and how appropriate that this absolutely gorgeous mushroom will now forever honor Loreleis' name. Unfortunately Lorelei died in 2023 between the time Sadie collected the mushroom and before it gained species status. There was an obvious excitement as we took turns getting a picture of the mushroom. The picture here is of Lauren taking her turn as you can see the determination and dedication to get a quality picture. Lauren Ré and Sadie and an old carpenter on Little Skookum all members of SSMC are listed as authors on the just released species paper. Congratulations are in order to Sadie for being one top notch collector.
September 16, 2025 7:00 pm - Intro to Mushroom Foraging with SSMC - Capital Vision Church
Several SSMC subject matter experts will be sharing a medley of presentations focused on introducing new foragers to the ins and outs of edible mushroom identification, forest safety, required permits, and more. A must-attend for anyone who has never foraged for fungi before, and a great refresher even for the most seasoned of foragers!
October 21, 2025 7:00 pm - TBD - Capital Vision Church
November 18, 2025 7:00 pm - "Animal Mycophiles" with author Eva Gordon - Capital Vision Church
December 16, 2025 at 7pm - SSMC Holiday Potluck, Silent Auction, and Elections - Capital Vision Church
Sequencing continues to get cheaper and as it does and more mushrooms get sequenced with fascinating new discoveries. This creates a need to give mushrooms that one day will likely be given species status a temporary “Provisional” name. Read about that process here.