News Feed
December 1, 2020
See a recent newspaper article featuring the club: Chanterelles, Hedgehogs and Black Trumpets Just a Few Edible Species Ready to Harvest in Lewis County
September 23, 2020
See a recent blog post by Vice President Steve Ness : What's in a name? Unlocking the mystery behind a strongly-scented waxy cap
September 1, 2020 Update
Grant approved!
The MP has been replaced by a completely new program and process. The new sequencing effort is now called Fungal Diversity Survey and they just announced that the SSMC has been awarded a grant for 30 sequences.
There is one small batch ready to go in for sequencing now and unless there is a lot of feedback to the contrary, these will be paid for sequences and the 30 free sequences will be used when the rains come and mushrooms explode in all their wonder.
July 6, 2020 Update
Wanted
The SSMC is looking to confirm, with a second sequence, the presence of the species Devil's Stool(Hygrocybe phaeococcinea) in Washington State. A secondary goal is to achieve some additional high quality photos of this elusive fungi.
Note the characteristics of this Fungus:
CAP:
Bright red with a dark center. Down-turned edge
1/2 to 1 1/2" across
Dry surface
GILLS:
Pale yellow/salmon in color
Attached to stem
STEM:
Color is mostly the same as cap
Bottom is almost transparent
Brittle, easily broken
HABITAT:
Bright sun for most of day
likes grass with underlying moss
HABIT:
Late summer to fall
after heavy rains
preceded by long dry spell
If you see this mushroom, immediately contact:
Eric Chandler e_jchandler@comcast.net
or
Steve Ness natvik@hctc.com
December 1, 2019 Update
Club member Steve Ness has the cover photo on the latest Fungi Magazine! Amazing photo Steve.
A new article by Alison Pouliot on her visit to the club.
September 9, 2019 Update
Mycoblitz
The mycoblitz is over and I believe each SSMC member who participated has already sent in their own individual observations. There were 7 or 8 SSMC members who had observations on the mycoblitz site - and most sent in fungi for a sequencing chance! Wow. Good job! Now it will be a waiting game to see which of our own examples will get picked for sequencing. If you were unable to take part in the original mycoblitz, good news; you have another chance. There is a second blitz planned for October 20th - 27th of this year. Wow, with all this rain too bad it wasn't those dates in this month before gates close.
Mycoflora Project
The SSMC has another grant for 30 sequences. If you have any particularly interesting mushroom that you would like to try for a sequence; get a good pictures of it, fill out a card, enter your pictures on SSMC iNat site and get it dried. But do it soon. Then get it to me so I can pull a tissue sample to send in and save the preserved mushroom to go to Burke Herbarium. .........Earlier the SSMC paid for an additional 25 sequences through the MP of which 19 provided successful results. This second batch of mushrooms has been sent into Burke Herbarium.
Burke Herbarium
The last package of samples to Burke included three groups; the MP paid for group by SSMC, an additional group of fungi from several SSMC members that was sent to Spain for sequencing outside of the MP (and is in GenBank now) and thirdly my original MP waxcap mushrooms. According to David Giblin, Collections Manager at Burke, the samples "made it through the freezer fine and they look great". They will soon be imaged and entered into the database and be available online through the Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria. Thanks to David and Joe Ammirati for their enthusiastic support!
Individual Highlights
In addition to this batch of mushrooms going to Burke, SSMC member Regina Johnson has just sent to Burke a large box of "maybe 150" polypores and Amanitas for their herbarium collection. Regina has surely become the PNW expert on polypores distribution and will be the presenter this coming Thursday at the Kitsap Peninsula Mycological Society.
https://kitsapmushrooms.org/events/
A followup to Jen Chandler's find of the first Devil's Stool (Hygrocybe phaeococcinea) to be sequenced in North America, is an expansion of knowledge by looking at this species from a scientific standpoint. The SSMC has contributed to the sequencing knowledge by looking at the DNA of a second Devil's Stool (Thanks to Andrus Voitk - mushroom from Newfoundland!). The SSMC is surely the North American experts on this species now. <smile> Additional sequencing is planned (see below). .............Additionally SSMC member Eric Chandler was mentioned in the last Newsletter from MP for his interesting find of an Entoloma which clearly needs to have the DNA looked at. Watch for a followup.
https://mailchi.mp/35ef587caa6d/07gucaks4m-495467?e=51afb7d21d
I had a recent question as to an ID that I couldn't figure out and I took it to Lauren Re - my go to scientist when all else fails. The SSMC is proud that she is a member. Lauren is the recipient of the Mike Beug Scholarship (Thank you Paul Stamets!!). Lauren participated in the mycoblitz - of course - and recently met with Mike Beug on her personal quest for knowledge.
What's Next
Another batch of several very promising fungi from several SSMC members and Projects will be sent in within days to be sequenced by a private contractor. Of special note in this batch is Eric's Entoloma mentioned above and several Devil's Stool sent to SSMC by renown mycologist Renee Lebeuf from her personal herbarium that were collected from Newfoundland, Quebec and Nova Scotia. (Thank you Renee!).........Perhaps the most exciting thing to watch for though is what surprises other sequenced mushrooms might bring. Besides those mentioned above, there are several promising mushrooms going in for a DNA look from several members. Watch for what is learned from these fungi sequences!
This is already too long to mention every SSMC member by name and project, but be assured there are several more seeds to projects and interest that are growing. Watch for those members and projects in upcoming updates!