Field Notes
 

If identification is part of you collecting routine, you should not restrict your observations simply to the specimens you collect.  Typically speaking, when you collect a mushroom you are merely removing the reproductive structure and leaving behind the vegetative portion of the fungus.  To aid you in your identification you will need to have some idea of the niche that the fungus occupies in the environment.  To get a better understanding of the niche your field notes should include the following:

 

1.    Date and weather – different species are more likely to found during certain months of the year

2.    Abundance – how often the species was observed

3.    Growth Habit – solitary, scattered, gregarious, clustered, etc.

4.    Substrate – humus, soil, grass, moss, wood, dung, etc.

5.    Vegetation – trees and shrubs within a 50 foot radius; the reason for such a large distance is that mycorrhizal species grow in association with rootlets that may be a sizeable distance from the trunk of the tree

6.    When growing on wood – type of wood/tree

7.    When growing on dung – type of dung, stage of decomposition

8.    When growing on ground – type of ground; disturbed, burnt, cultivated, sandy, etc. (Arora, 13)

 

Works Cited

Arora, David.  Mushrooms Demystified.  2nd ed.  Berkley, Ten Speed Press, 1986.