Jack-O-Lantern Mushroom

Description:

Some of these mushrooms were platter-sized! I was hoping they were edible but oh no...they're poisonous! Tonight I'll check it out for bioluminescense.

Habitat:

Moist forest: Indian Camp Mountain Mountain: Rosman NC

Notes:

The Jack o'Lantern mushroom's fruiting body (its stem and cap) is an orange color. Its bioluminescence, a blue-green color, is only observable in low light conditions when the eye becomes dark-adapted. The whole mushroom doesn't glow — only the gills do so. This is due to an enzyme, called luciferase, acting upon a compound called luciferin, leading to the emission of light much as fireflies do when glowing. Wikipedia