Welcome!

Welcome to the second Online-Only issue of the Sporadic Press. We are going paperless to simplify the Editors job, save money, and help the environment.

November Meeting

The next meeting will be on Monday, November 3^rd in Room 101 at the Casa Del Prado in Balboa Park.
 (Map, see # 15)

Our speaker will be Eric Piehel. His topic will be "Fungi: A Kingdom Endangered".

The topic is the loss of and importance of biodiversity, paying particular attention to fungal diversity. And how the Mycorium will seek to scientifically document every species of fungi in San Diego County while educating the mycophobic public about the importance of fungi in our environment.

Eric writes "My fascination with fungi began with my polish grandmother. When I was young boy we would walk in the woods, and she would pick mushrooms for soups and sauces. This fascination continued into my academic studies at the University of Connecticut, where I studied ecology and conducted research on fungal diversity of decaying birch trees.

This is my second year as a member of the SDMS in which I am very excited to be a part of and honored to have been given the opportunity to present a lecture on my favorite topic- FUNGI!"

Pre-Meeting Dinner

Our usual custom of treating the speaker to dinner will be observed.  We will meet at 5 pm, at a location to be determined. Watch for an email with details.

All California Club Foray

January 29 to February 1, 2009

Join an intimate gathering of California mushroomers for the third biannual All California Club Foray in Albion, CA. This foray is scheduled during the heart of the winter mushroom season, and close to excellent mushroom habitat. Lodging was completely renovated one year ago and now includes many amenities. Meals and the company will be divine! Best of all, the price is right: Friday night through Sunday noon includes all meals and lodging, guided forays and evening entertainment for only $135 per person.

Sponsored by the Bay Area Mycological Society, this foray will be geared towards taxonomists, but any California club member or member of NAMA is welcome to attend. Judy Roger, Oregon Mycological Society and NAMA Executive Secretary, is foray mycologist.

For more details, please visit http://www.bayareamushrooms.org/forays/accf.html or contact Debbie Viess at amanitarita at yahoo.com or 510.430.9353

To allow couples, friends and families private rooms, registration will be limited to 60 people, so please book early. To reserve your space, send a check or money order (made out to BAMS) to:

BAMS
PO Box 164
San Leandro, CA 94577

Hope to see you there! Debbie Viess and David Rust

SOMA Mushroom Camp

The Sonoma County Mycological Association (SOMA) has set a date for their annual Mushroom Camp. It will be held January 17 - 19, 2009, (Martin Luther King Holiday weekend). They will be putting details up on their website: www.somamushrooms.org as soon as they are finalized, so please stay tuned!

Golden Gourmet in the LA Times

http://www.latimes.com/features/la-fo-calcook1-2008oct01,0,7861939.story?track=ntothtml

Mendocino Mushroom Festival

Fall in Northern California’s Mendocino County turns magical when the rains come and delectable varieties of edible mushrooms appear. Mendocino County is home to more than 3,000 mushroom varieties -- including the rare candy cap mushroom, with its intense maple-syrup flavor and sweet fragrance -- that grows only along the northern coast of California.

The pinnacle of mushroom season is Mendocino County’s annual Mushroom Festival, this year November 7th through 16th.

Mushroom Magic

Mushrooming is a fascinating but sometimes lethal pursuit. Kevin Rushby goes on a tour in North Yorkshire to learn how to tell the delicious from the deadly.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/interactive/2008/oct/17/travelfoodanddrink-uk

Fungal Cannons

Fungal Cannons, with music.

Not a Mushroom

Most mushroom hunters have had the experience of spotting what looked like a mushroom under an oak, only to find on closer inspection that it was just another oak gall. In some places, those sneaky galls look even more like a mushroom, thanks to Heteroecus sanctaeclarae. Check out the pictures here.

While looking for more information about this, I found a great collection of fungus photos at Calphotos. Don't make the mistake I made, and try to find Heteroceus in the fungi!
Bug fans can find more bug pictures at BugGuide.

Another Mushroom Blog

Great mushroom blog from Southern Oregon at: http://www.madaboutmushrooms.com/. See the article about commercial mushroom picking.

Pt Reyes Mycoblitz

The Bay Area clubs have been blitzing the mushrooms at Point Reyes. After several collecting sessions, they have a comprehensive view of what fruits at the park in several seasons. For more information, see:
http://www.bayareamushrooms.org/mycoblitz/index.html, and a good article at:
http://baynature.org/articles/oct-dec-2008/ear-to-the-ground/point-reyes-mycoblitz.

Mushrooms in the News

Recent news items:
Yachats Mushroom Festival
How NOT to end your foray
The Mushroom Circle
Mushrooming on Cape Cod
Wild Mushroom Celebration

What's Cooking?

Fungi as Food

Two sources for a "Recipe of the Month".
BAMS, and MAMS
and a chocolate mushroom soup.

Fungi of the Month

Now there are two "Fungus of the Month" sites:
Tom Volk's long-running series at : http://tomvolkfungi.net/.
And a new one at: http://www.bayareamushrooms.org/mushroommonth/index.html.

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SDMS Information