By Maureen Fellinger

It’s the end of June which means that it is time to keep an eye out for chanterelles! Chanterelle mushrooms fall under the Cantharellus genus, with the most common being Cantharellus cibarius, also known as the golden chanterelle. These mushrooms are fairly easy to spot with their golden yellow hue, and when you see one, you’ll probably find many more close by. Chanterelles have an apricot smell, and their false forked gills are the key identifier. Mushroom gills are the thin, papery structures underneath the cap; unlike true gills, false gills are not separate features that can be individually picked off.

Being confident in identifying chanterelles is vital as they have a toxic lookalike, Omphalotus illudens, also known as the jack-o-lantern. Both chanterelles and jack-o-lanterns have similar coloring and have the same growing season— summer through early fall. Jack-o-lantern mushrooms are typically larger than chanterelles, and grow in tightly packed clusters. Chanterelles tend to grow in clusters as well, but are more scattered and spread out than a jack-o-lantern cluster. Jack-o-lantern gills are fleshy and will break off if you rub them, while chanterelle gills cannot be rubbed off. When in doubt, make a spore print of the mushroom— the chanterelle has a pink spore print while the jack-o-lantern has a cream colored spore print.

Mistaking a toxic mushroom from an edible mushroom is a mistake that you never want to make. Before consuming any wild mushroom, make sure you take the steps to be able to confidently identify what you are eating.

*The writer is Agraria’s Education Administrator.