Spotting

Chester, this is wonderful advice. Thank you so much for taking the time to explain. It will make me a much more effective mushroom hunter (and thus my 7yr old son and hubby who both think mushroom hunting is akin to the most exciting treasure hunt imagineable!). I'll use these tips to make more effective future spottings! :)

I can often be found lying on the ground to get shots of those features, but you need not do that if it would be uncomfortable. Many with stems can be bent slightly to get a better view or you can just record those features and include in description. When you have a group of same fungi, like here, no harm will come by plucking one up and examining it closer. The "mushroom" you see is the fruiting body of a larger organism that goes on living in the wood or soil where you found it, no more harm comes to it, than would come to a tree you pull a fruit from. As to any concerns of toxicity, do not eat any and no problem.

Thanks for the feedback. Im not sure how to get images of the gills/stem when it's so low to the ground or tight to the log. I worry that I will kill it if I try to move it to see these things? I also am hesitant to touch the mushrooms out of fear of toxicity. Should I not be cautious of this? I'm still learning the ropes to mushroom spotting so I appreciate helpful tips! Im enjoying it, but very cautious. Perhaps errantly... :)

Pictures of the gills, are they free or attached, what color are they, also the stem are veil remnants visible, what color is it. Noting if the cap is dry or slimy, is the flesh tough or brittle. All things that greatly improve getting an accurate ID to your mushrooms.