Leon Shernoff is currently in his 18th year as editor of the internationally distributed magazine Mushroom, the Journal of Wild Mushrooming.  For the past few years, he has also been developing the Fungal Data System, a custom data store for mushroom morphological data. Leon Shernoff presented“Life as a Mushroom: A mushroom’s-eye view of life”

Introduction to Mushroom Identification – Stephen Bucklin

To become skilled in mushroom identification, one needs the following: time, patience, attention to detail, and the ability and willingness to navigate the jargon-filled websites and field guides in which known species can be found. Join WPMC President and Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy Naturalist Educator Stephen Bucklin for an introduction to the incredible diversity of fungi found in Western Pennsylvania. We’ll review morphological groupings, mycological terminology, and resources to help you better know the mushrooms found in Western Pennsylvania and beyond.

Mushroom Photography for ID & Clarity – Cara Coulter

With the variety of fungus in the world, their different shapes, sizes, and qualities, photographing them can be quite a challenge. This is especially difficult if you are trying photograph them for identification purposes. If you want to present good photos for identification, you may wonder “What parts do I need to photograph?” This course will teach you what you need to focus on for presenting and documenting mushrooms. WPMC Vice President and Identifier Cara Coulter will help guide you on what to focus on for different species.  Cara will show you inexpensive methods to provide optimal ID photos with your phone or DSLR.  Don’t have a fancy expensive camera? No problem, we can still work with what you have. 

Ten 10 Common Boletes in Our Area – Scott Pavelle

Everyone knows that boletes are particularly delicious – and often frustrating because they are so hard to identify to species. This talk by WPMC Bolete Specialist Scott Pavelle will tell you all you need to know, in order to identify ten good edibles that are common in SW Pennsylvania. Plus, a bonus pair of bitter boletes will bring things up to a nice, round dozen. Bring your notepads and any samples you would like to share or discuss.

Introduction to Microscopy: Spores, Squash Mounts & Stains – Richard Jacob

Before DNA barcoding came of age, one of the major tools in a mycologist’s toolbox was the microscope. Academic publications on new species often contain extensive microscopic descriptions of the spores and other features in the fruiting body. As you become more interested in mushrooms, you will start to find that you need to look at some of these characteristics, in order to identify and/or differentiate one species from other similar looking species. This lecture by WPMC Past President and Identifier Richard Jacob will cover the basics of purchasing and using a microscope for the analysis of fungi. Two sample preparation methods will be taught–spore collection and squash mounts–as well as use of a few important stains.

Links and resources mentioned in the Microscopy talk

For reference here are the slides from the Miscroscopy talk too: