The guest speaker for our November 2nd meeting will be David Rust. The meeting will be hosted in Room 101, Casa Del Prado in Balboa Park at 6:30 PM. November is also time for officer elections. All offices(President, VP, Secretary, Treasurer, Member-at-large) are open.
David’s presentation is title “Introduction to Wild and Edible Mushrooms”
David will describe different fungal shapes and strategies for spore dissemination. He will introduce fungal tree associations in Northern California and provide a synopsis of mushroom ecology. His talk will include warnings about the dangers of poisonous mushrooms and cautions about consuming species we assume are edible. He will even toss in some recipes, if you’re brave enough to eat mushrooms after hearing some challenging stories.
This is also an opportunity to learn more about North American Mycological Association (NAMA) activities and educational opportunities. David has been advocating the North American Mycoflora Project and encouraging clubs to engage in their own surveys to document local fungi, part of a new citizen science endeavor to document all fungi across the continent.
David Rust is president and webmaster of the North American Mycological Association (NAMA) and co-founder of the Bay Area Mycological Society. He created the science-oriented All California Club Forays in 2005 and coordinated the Mycoblitz science forays at Point Reyes National Seashore from 2005-2007. He is an active member of the Yosemite Fungal Survey and participated last spring in a National Geographic Bioblitz in Muir Woods National Monument. For over a decade, David has followed news and research about the devastating forest pathogen Phytophthora ramorum, which causes the disease known as Sudden Oak Death. He is a regular speaker at the Santa Cruz and Point Reyes National Seashore fungus fairs.
Pre-Meeting Dinner:
Join us before the meeting at 5 PM as we treat our guest speaker to dinner at Blue Water Grill 3667 India St.
For $25 you can join NAMA — the North American Mycological Association. NAMA generously puts their two (excellent) publications on the web so that anyone may read them; however, by joining you not only support a worthy group, but you become privy to their group emails, which are argumentative, educational, interesting and put you in the middle (with the option of joining the conversation) of what’s currently hot in the world of foraging. Current threads include one on the ability of favored species (like chanterelles) to withstand heavy pressure from pickers, and how (and if) to certify those who sell what they’ve collected to retailers, chefs or consumers. If you want more mushroom talk, and you’re not getting it at the dinner table, try NAMA!