Wildlife Viewing

Common Yukon
mushrooms

© Government of Yukon 2019
ISBN 978-1-55362- 828- 6
For more information on
mushrooms and other
Yukon wildlife, contact:
Government of Yukon
Wildlife Viewing Program
Box 2703 (V-5R)
Whitehorse, Yukon Y1A 2C6
Phone:
867-667-8291
Toll free:
1-800-661-0408 x 8291
Email:
wildlife.viewing@gov.yk.ca
Yukon.ca
Find us on Facebook at “Yukon Wildlife Viewing”
Special thanks to Steve Trudell for his contributions
to this project.
A guide to common
Yukon mushrooms
Mushrooms play an important Table of contents
role in every ecosystem
The fungus among us............. 2
in Yukon. They were once
thought to be very primitive Mushroom habitat ................... 4
plants, but are now recognised Mushroom morphology.......... 6
as neither plants nor animals, Mushroom identification......... 8
but members of their own
Respectful mushroom
kingdom: fungi. Following viewing....................................10
insects, fungi are the
Fleshy pored mushrooms....12
second most diverse group
of organisms in the world, Toothed mushrooms.............14
and some estimate that Gilled mushrooms.................16
only 10 to 15 per cent of all Those other mushrooms.....20
North American fungi have Mushrooms in
even been described. our ecosystem.......................22
For more information Mushroom myths...................24
This guide will introduce
on harvesting forest
you to some examples of Additional resources.............25
resources, contact:
common mushrooms you
Government of Yukon might find along Yukon’s
Forest Management Branch trails. The mushrooms are
Box 2703 (K-918) grouped into categories Do not rely on this
Whitehorse, Yukon Y1A 2C6 based on their morphology guide to identify edible
Phone: (appearance and structure), mushrooms. This booklet
867-667-3999 including a photo and short will introduce you to
Toll free: description. You will likely the fungus among us,
1-800-661-0408 x 3999 recognise some mushrooms but there is much more
Email: but in order to fully identify to learn!
forestry@gov.yk.ca one you’ll need to purchase
more detailed guides. Please
remember that eating wild
foods such as mushrooms
can be dangerous and
can result in severe
illness or death.
1
 The fungus
among us

A mushroom is like the tip of an iceberg

floating on the ocean; there is much
more hiding beneath the surface.
A mushroom is the fruit of plants. Others specialise in
a larger mold-like fungus further breaking down organic
living in the soil, wood, or material mixed in the soil.
other material known as the Some species of mushroom
“substrate.” Fungi with these have symbiotic relationships
conspicuous fruitbodies are with plants. The mushrooms Mushrooms also form part
referred to as “macrofungi” act as root extensions, trading of the diet of animals such
but are popularly known as nutrients and water for sugars as squirrels and caribou.
mushrooms or toadstools. and other organic compounds The next time you
YG/Marina Milligan

Mushrooms play important encounter a squirrel

roles in our ecosystems.
Many are decomposers that
help to break down dead
from the plant. The fungi help
retain water and can assist
in soil stabilisation.
midden in the forest,
look up on the lower
branches of a nearby
spruce tree. Often you will
find old mushrooms cached

Jim Crozier
by the squirrel.

2 3
 Timing is everything
Mushroom Mushroom growth is very points in the season, different
habitat dependent on season and
weather conditions. Fungi
species of mushroom will fruit
at different times. Some arrive
can lie hidden beneath early in the spring and
Like plants, the surface of their are absent for the
substrate for many rest of the summer,
different fungi years until the others will arrive
prefer different conditions are just before frost.
right to produce The fun in mush-
habitats. a mushroom. room viewing
Generally, is learning
Some grow in soil saturated a damp the habits of
with water. Others prefer summer with your favourite
dry, open fields. Mushrooms plenty of rainy, mushrooms,
all grow on a certain type warm days will like the migration
of substrate such as soil, produce bountiful patterns of a bird.
decaying wood, gravel, mushroom crops. Sometimes you may
or even live trees.
Just like wildflowers only have a window
will bloom at different of a few days to see them!

YG/Marina Milligan

YG/Marina Milligan
YG/Matt Clarke
Carol Foster

Shaggy Manes can be found These mushrooms prefer Russulas can be found on A mushroom growing on
on residential lawns. a gravel sandbar. woodland soil and leaf litter. decaying wood.

4 5
 Mushroom morphology
Each mushroom will have different
Mushrooms come in many different shapes and sizes, body parts that make it distinct.
but they all function to produce and disperse spores,
which are like seeds in fungal reproduction. The most
common mushroom shapes found along Yukon’s
trails are: Cap

James Lindsey/CC BY-SA 3.0

YG/Marina Milligan
Ring or annulus Hymenium
Cups Clubs or corals (gills, spines, or pores)
(not always present)

Stalk or stem
YG/Marina Milligan
Hayley McClelland

Carol Foster
Brackets or shelves Cap and stem

Volva
(not always present)

6 7
 Mushroom identification
There are thousands of
species of mushrooms in
Yukon that even experts
have difficulty identifying.
Consider focusing on just

Sara Nie lse n

three or four common
mushrooms without trying
to identify every fungus
you find.
Examples of
It’s good practice to find
spore prints
a mushroom identification
buddy with whom you can compare notes and seek a
second opinion. You might see a mushroom as a rusty-red
colour while your partner sees it as a brownish-orange
colour, which may change how you identify it. Get a closer look
The colour of the spores To make a spore print:
Learning to identify mushrooms will help you identify some
can be a daunting task. mushrooms. Depending 1. Cut off the stem.
on the species, spores
2. Place the cap on a piece
may be white, beige, rusty,
of black and white paper
brown, or black. If you
such as this sheet.
are lucky you can see
accumulations of spores 3. Cover and leave
beneath a mushroom overnight or for several
where it is growing. hours undisturbed.
More often, you will need
to make a spore print 4. Gently remove the cover
with a healthy, mature and cap and note the
mushroom. colour of the spores
left behind.

8 9
 Respectful How yo
u ca
STAY S n
AF E
mushroom in
bear co
untr y

viewing If you wish to pick them, take only

„„
firm and robust mushrooms and
leave the others to return to the
soil. Mushrooms are the fruiting
body of the fungus and are

YG
needed for reproduction.

If you are harvesting an edible

„„
mushroom, cut the stem of a
Always carry bear
„„ mushroom rather than ripping
spray and practice out the “roots” to limit the
bear safety. Look up damage done to the part of the
and around you from fungus that is underground.
time to time to watch However, if you are unfamiliar
for signs of bear with a mushroom, you may
activity in the area. need to collect the entire
For more information specimen for identification.

YG/Brian Charles
on bear safety
Whether you’re photographing and pick up the above
drawing the colour and variety of brochure at your
Yukon’s mushrooms, or looking for a nearest Yukon
government
tasty addition to dinner, it’s important office, or
to have respect for the land. download
it from
Here are some best practices for mushroom viewing: Yukon.ca.

Respect land owners and their

„„ Carry a map and
„„
wishes, and ask permission if compass or GPS
you’d like to view mushrooms to keep track of
on their property. your location,
and be prepared
Watch where you step. Avoid
„„ for sudden
trampling other vegetation to weather changes.
reach a mushroom.

10 11
 Fleshy pored mushrooms Aspen Rough
Stem
Leccinum insigne
King Bolete
Boletus edulis This common
bolete has an
The King Bolete has a tan orange-reddish

YG/Marina Milligan
cap that turns brown and cap with a texture
is larger than most other of soft leather,
Tocekas/Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0

boletes. It has a massive that is almost flat

stalk that is covered
with a fine white “mesh”
lacking brown scales.
It is found under conifers
in mid-summer and is
considered by many to
be the king of edible mush-
rooms. However, the flies
also enjoy this mushroom
and often find it first!
Tinder Polypore
with age. The stalk
is white when it
is young, but develops
tiny brown bumps with age,
giving it the name “rough stem.”
It is found under poplars in mid-summer,
often before other mushrooms have fruited.
Slippery Jack
Suillus tomentosus
Slippery Jacks are a

YG/Marina Milligan
common sight below
Fomes fomentarius the pine trees of
Many excited children have happened upon this shelf-like Yukon’s forests.
or “bracket” mushroom growing at the base of live Their bright yellow
trees or on dead logs. Its tough, caps and thick spongy
woody cap makes it hymenium make
incredibly durable, and the them easily stand out
tough pores underneath amongst the moss
are much smaller than and debris on the
those of spongy boletes. forest floor. The flesh
This mushroom was turns blue when it
traditionally dried and has been bruised or
used as tinder to cut, but not as quickly
catch the spark when or noticeably as certain
lighting a fire. other boletes.

12 13
 Toothed mushrooms Bitter Hedgehog/
Blue-footed
Scaly Tooth
Sweet Tooth/
Steve Trudell

Sarcodon scabrosus
Hedgehog This large mushroom closely
Mushroom resembles the Hawkwing.
Hydnum repandum The scales on the cap are not
nearly so large and prominent,
The underside of this pale and it has a strong odor of

Steve Trudell
tan-to-caramel coloured watermelon rind. The base of
mushroom has hundreds of the stem is often blackish or even
brittle spines that break off dark-greenish. It can be found next to
easily. By contrast, the top of Hawkwings, so watch carefully for differences
the cap is relatively smooth, between the two. It is found under poplars in mid-summer,
though uneven. The Sweet Tooth often before other mushrooms have fruited.
grows on the forest floor closer
to pine and spruce, often in patches.
It fruits late in the season and is a good Combed Tooth
mushroom for beginner viewers as it is very distinct. Hericium coralloides
H. Krisp /Own work, CC BY 3.0

This brilliant white mushroom has multiple branches

Hawkwing with long teeth hanging down like a shaggy beard
Sarcodon imbricatus or icicles. It is strikingly beautiful and fruits
repeatedly in the same location for many years.
Hawkwings are large mushrooms
It grows on decaying logs or stumps
distinguished by their dark brown
of poplar trees in particular.
caps with brown shingles or
scales along the top.
The surface is very dry
and the underside is
covered with thick
teeth instead of gills.
It is seen often in
late spring under
spruce trees.

14 15
 Gilled mushrooms Russulas
Russulas are one of the
most common mushrooms
Shaggy Mane you’ll encounter in Yukon’s forests.
Carol Foster

YG/Carrie McClelland
Coprinus comatus They are distinguished by their
brittle texture and will snap cleanly
This highly distinguishable like a piece of chalk. Though there
mushroom is a favourite are many colours and variations,
among beginner mushroom they are very difficult to identify
viewers as it is easily to the correct species.
identified by its cylindrical
shaggy cap. The edges
become black with age and
Short-stemmed Russula
Russula brevipes
quickly turn into an inky mess.
Shaggy Manes are found in This common russula can
disturbed sites such as lawns, be seen bursting from
gravel pits, along trail sides, the soil fully formed.

YG/Heather Milligan
or road edges.
Emetic Russula
Russula emetica
Beautiful to look at not, but not to eat.
Also known as “The Sickener.”
Oyster Mushroom
Pleurotus populinus
This smooth, white, pale grey or pale brown shelving Fly Agaric /Fly Amanita
mushroom grows in clusters in early summer, mostly on Amanita muscaria
poplar logs and stumps. The stalk is missing or very small
This charismatic mushroom has
and off-centre from the cap.
a bright red to orange-yellow
Its white or pale grey
cap with white, wart-like
gills run down the
dots over its surface.
stalk to the base
You may recognise this
of the mushroom.
mushroom from the video
This mushroom
game Super Mario Brothers.
sometimes has a
It is found in central

Carrie McClelland
subtle anise or
Yukon near Dawson City
Own work, CC BY 2.5

licorice smell.
as well as along the Alaskan
Aaron Sherman/

coast. It is very toxic and

potentially dangerous if eaten.
16 17
 Orange Delicious/ Prince Mushroom
Orange Milk Cap Agaricus augustus
Lactarius deliciosus group Prince Mushrooms are
similar to Meadow

G. Chernilevsky/Own Work, Public Domain

The distinctly orange cap
of this mushroom may have Mushrooms though
concentric rings or a greenish often much larger
tinge with age. Its gills are and covered with
bright orange and the flesh brown, fibrous scales.

Carol Foster
exudes an orange milky fluid The skirt-like veil
when it is broken or cut. It is often found does not disappear like
in mixed stands of pine and spruce. Meadow Mushrooms and
it smells very sweet,
like almonds. It is found on
Cortinarius species the ground in the woods or
in disturbed areas with rich soil.
Eric Steinert/CC BY-SA 3.0

This is a very common and

diverse group of attractive
mushrooms. However,
its members are not easily Meadow Mushroom
identifiable and can frustrate Agaricus campestris
even mushroom experts. These mushrooms are similar to ones you might find in
They are recognized by the supermarket. They have a white cap and stalk,
the presence of cortina or with pink gills that turn a dark chocolate brown with age.
a silky “cobwebby” veil that They grow in grassy and disturbed areas including lawns.
extends from stalk to cap. Other mushrooms in their button stage can appear
similar to a Meadow Mushroom.
A chocolate-brown spore print
Woodland Agaricus (not rusty or cigar brown)
Agaricus silvicola will help identify this
This white mushroom occurs on the as an agaricus. Its
ground under spruce and poplar trees pleasant “mushroomy”
and is quite common. It is distinguished smell (not “chemically”)

Nathan Wilson/CC BY-SA 3.0

from other agaricus mushrooms by and lack of bright chrome
staining a warm, golden-yellow yellow bruising when
when it is rubbed, by having a you crush the base
Luridiformis, CC BY 3.0

sweet anise smell, and typically of the stem helps

has a longer, more crooked stem distinguish this species
than other agaricus mushrooms. from its relatives.

18 19
 Beentree - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0
Those other mushrooms
Morels
Lycoperdon perlatum
Common Puffball
Lycoperdon perlatum Morels have a distinctive
honeycombed cap that is
Yukon’s puffballs are shaped like a Christmas
often small and tree. The ridges of the cap
pear-shaped with are fully intergrown with
no gills, teeth, or the stalk and do not hang
tubes. They grow over it. There is a great
in tightly packed deal of variety in the shape
clusters and turn and colour of morels. They
brown with age. fruit in spring, typically in
In late fall, should areas that have been recently
you step on brown burned by forest fire.
puffballs, dark
yellow-brown
clouds of spores
YG/Carrie McClelland

are released
into the air.
False Morel
Gyromitra esculenta
With their “brain-like” cap,
False Morels are vaguely
like true morels described
Common Puffballs can be above. However, the
easily confused with other
caps lack the ridges
mushrooms at the button
stage. If you want to and pits of true morels,
be sure of this species, and are wavy or undulating.
cut a cross-section to see A cross section through

Steve Trudell
if it is pure white inside the cap makes this distinction
(not yellowing) and clearer. They can sometimes
doesn’t have small gills be found in the company
hidden underneath or of true morels, so care must
inside like shown here.
be taken to distinguish
between the two.

20 21
 Mushrooms in
our ecosystem These nests
can then be
occupied by
Though you other animals
such as owls,
may not see the iconic squirrels,
toadstool-shaped fruitbody, or even bats.
fungi appear in almost every type Many creatures
benefit from the
of environment on Earth. Fungi play presence of a fungus.
a critical role in helping to renew Mushrooms and mycelia provide food and habitat for some
and maintain healthy ecosystems. insects. Flies will lay eggs in a fresh mushroom and when
the larvae hatch they have a readily available food source
Many mushrooms are saprotrophic: they feed on dead all around them. These larvae are then an important
organisms. They are essential in breaking down dead plants food source for larger,
and animals so that the components are available for carnivorous insects
new life. These agents of decay enrich the soil by returning such as beetles
nutrients and reducing the debris of dead organisms. and centipedes.
Other mushroom fungi are intimately associated with
the roots of plants, forming mycorrhizas (“fungus-roots”)
with them. The fungus provides the plant with nutrients
such as nitrogen and phosphorus,
essential in helping plants
grow. In return it receives
sugars from the

Carol Foster
photosynthesizing
plants.
Fungi decay the
inside of old
trees, softening
YG/Kelcy Tousignant

the wood and

allowing wood-
peckers to easily
carve out holes
for their nests.

22 23
 Mushroom myths
FAL SE
There are no poisonous
mushrooms in Yukon.
There are plenty of poisonous mushrooms
that are quite common throughout Yukon. However not
all poisonous mushrooms are deadly. Some will make
you quite ill and cause gastrointestinal problems.
Mushrooms have no
FAL SE
nutritional value.
Mushrooms have many
different types of nutrients.
In fact some mushrooms
have more potassium
than bananas!
Mushrooms FAL SE
are plants.
Fungi are neither plant
nor animal but belong
to their own kingdom.
If animals have nibbled FAL SE
on a type of mushroom,
it’s safe for humans too.
Animals have different digestive
systems and metabolisms
than humans and we can
JC Jacobs/CC BY-SA 3.0
not necessarily process the
same things. Using animal
activity is not a safe
way to determine if the
mushroom is edible.
24
Additional resources
Start by purchasing two or three different books that focus
on mushrooms of northwest North America. Each author
will have used slightly different descriptors that may better
relate to the mushroom you are identifying.
Remember that none of these books are based on observations
of Yukon mushrooms; therefore, there may be slight variations
between the mushrooms and habitat described
in the book, and what is true for Yukon mushrooms.
Alaska’s mushrooms: a wide-ranging guide (2016).
Laursen, G.A. and McArthur, C.N. Alaska Northwest Books.
All That The Rain Promises and More… (1991).
Arora, D. Ten Speed Press.
Common Mushrooms of the Northwest (2006). Sept,
J.D. Calypso Publishing.
Mushrooms and Other Fungi of North America (2010).
Phillips, R. Firefly Books.
Mushrooms Demystified (1986).
Arora, D. Ten Speed Press.
Mushrooms of Northwest North America (1991).
Schalkwijk-Barendsen, H.M.E. Lone Pine Press.
Mushrooms of the Boreal Forest (1997).
YG/Brian Charles
Bossenmaeir, E.F. University Extension Press.
Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest (2009).
Trudell, S. and J. Ammirati. Timber Press.
Mushrooming with confidence: a guide to collecting edible
and tasty mushrooms (2012). Schwab, A. Skyhorse Publishing.
25
 iStock / Grace True
Fires play an important
role in rejuvenating
Yukon’s forests and
keeping them healthy.
The year after a forest fire, morels will fruit
in abundance for two to three weeks in June following the
retreat of snow and return of warm weather. Morels prefer
south-facing slopes that are well drained. They are usually
grouped around the base of pine or spruce trees.

You can find out where the previous

summer’s forest fires occurred by
visiting Yukon.ca.

Learn more about Yukon’s morel

mushroom harvest by picking up
the Forest Management Branch’s
brochure or downloading it
from Yukon.ca.

For free distribution only.

Finished with your copy?
Pass it on.