Welcome to Mushroom World
Step into the fascinating world of mushrooms with Mushroom World – your go-to resource for fungi information. Our site offers clear information and beautiful images of mushrooms.
If you're curious about what fungi actually are and how they differ from plants and animals, be sure to visit our what are fungi? page for an easy-to-understand explanation.
Since there are thousands of known species of mushrooms, we have limited our database to the most common ones. New species are also continuously added to the site.
Come and explore the wonders of mushrooms with us. We hope you find our site informative, inspiring, and a valuable resource on your journey of mushroom discovery.
What you can do on Mushroom World
Browse the database
Explore mushrooms from the alphabetical list or search by name or properties.
Identify a mushroom
Know some characteristics but not the name? Use our mushroom identification helper to narrow it down.
New to identification? Start with identification basics.
Test your knowledge
Try our identification quiz and see how many mushrooms you recognise. Each run gives you new questions.
Upload your photos
Have good mushroom photos to share? Use the upload form and we will see if we can include them on the site.
Today's Mushroom
A quick highlight from our database
Today's mushroom is Peziza phyllogena (Common Brown Cup). It grows in Europe, North America.
Dimensions: 3-12 cm diameter * 2-5 cm tall
Description:
Peziza phyllogena, also known as the Early Spring Cup, is a large, irregular saucer-shaped fungus that ranges in colour from reddish brown to olive or yellowish brown. It often appears in small, trooping groups on soil or woody debris under hardwoods or conifers, with some specimens contorted or fused together. Fruiting in spring and early summer, it is commonly found during morel season and can be mistaken for other brown cup fungi.
Fruiting body upper (hymenial) surface is reddish brown to olive or yellowish brown and smooth. The outer (lower) surface is similar in colour, sometimes with more purplish tones, and may appear finely granular or mealy, especially near the margin. The fruit body is shallowly cup-shaped, often compressed, lobed, or irregular, with a thin, sharp margin that turns black when dry. It is sessile, attached at a narrow central point. The flesh is thin, brittle, and brown to whitish. Spore print white.
Microscopic Features: Spores measure 17–22 x 7–10 µm including ornamentation. They are subfusiform to fusiform at maturity. Initially smooth, they soon become verruculose to verrucose with fine isolated warts measuring 0.25–0.5 µm in height. The spores often develop broad, flattened apical caps and are typically 1- or 2-guttulate, especially during development.
Synonyms: Phylloscypha phyllogena and Peziza badioconfusa are synonyms.
Phylloscypha phyllogena on the the MushroomExpert.Com Web site.
If you are interested in this mushroom, look it up in our database for more detailed photographs and additional information.
Many mushrooms are poisonous, and some can be lethally toxic. Distinguishing between edible and poisonous mushrooms can be very challenging. Therefore, we strongly advise against consuming wild mushrooms. This website does not contain any information about the edibility or toxicity of mushrooms.
Although efforts have been made to ensure accuracy on this website, the information may contain errors and omissions. Therefore, all content provided is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be relied upon or used as a basis for consuming any plants or mushrooms.
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