Glossary

A gilled mushroom — the classic cap-on-a-stem shape with gills underneath.

Agaric is the informal name for fungi with a cap, a stem, and gills (lamellae) on the underside, such as field mushrooms and many _Amanita_ species. It describes the shape, not whether a species is safe — agarics include both edible and deadly species.

A dated, located observation of a species, submitted so it counts towards official wildlife data.

A biological record is a structured observation — what species, where, when, and by whom — submitted to schemes like iRecord or the NBN Atlas. Logging your finds this way helps build the national picture of where fungi occur and how that's changing.

A fleshy mushroom with a spongy layer of pores under the cap instead of gills.

Boletes are fungi (mostly in the _Boletus_ and related genera) with a cap and stem like an agaric, but a sponge-like layer of fine pores on the underside instead of gills. Most British boletes are edible, but a few cause stomach upset, so confident identification still matters.

The umbrella-shaped top of a mushroom, also called the pileus.

The cap (pileus) is the upper, usually rounded part of a fruiting body that shelters the spore-producing surface — gills, pores, or teeth — underneath. Its colour, shape, texture, and how it changes with age are key identification features.

Members of the public collecting real scientific data, like logging fungi finds for researchers to use.

Citizen science means ordinary recorders — not just professional mycologists — contribute genuine data, for example by submitting verified finds to iRecord, iNaturalist, or the NBN Atlas. ForageGB's Logbook and ID Workbench feed into this wider effort when you choose to share records.

_Amanita phalloides_, a deadly poisonous mushroom and the leading cause of fatal mushroom poisoning in the UK.

The death cap (_Amanita phalloides_) contains amatoxins that cause severe, often fatal liver failure, with symptoms typically delayed 6–24 hours after eating — long after the meal feels forgotten. It is one of the UK's most dangerous fungi and is regularly mistaken for edible species. **Never eat any wild fungus identified only from an app, photo, or single feature — always confirm with an expert and a field guide, and never eat on a single identification.**

_Amanita virosa_ (and related white _Amanita_ species), a deadly poisonous all-white mushroom related to the death cap.

The destroying angel is a group of all-white, deadly poisonous _Amanita_ species closely related to the death cap, and a leading cause of fatal mushroom poisoning. They can be confused with edible white mushrooms, especially by beginners. **Never eat any wild fungus identified only from an app, photo, or single feature — always confirm with an expert and a field guide, and never eat on a single identification.**

The visible mushroom itself — the part that pops up above ground to release spores.

The fruiting body (sometimes called the sporocarp) is the temporary, spore-producing structure a fungus grows when conditions are right. The bulk of the organism — the mycelium — lives on year-round, mostly unseen, in the soil or wood.

An organised group walk to find and identify fungi, usually led by an experienced recorder.

A foray is a guided outing — often run by the British Mycological Society or a local group — where participants collect and identify fungi together under expert supervision. Forays are one of the best ways to learn identification safely and to contribute records to biological recording schemes.

The thin, blade-like ridges under a mushroom's cap where spores are produced.

Gills (lamellae) are the papery blades radiating from the stem to the cap edge on the underside of many mushrooms. Their colour, spacing, and how they attach to the stem are important identification clues, and spore colour is best confirmed with a spore print.

The microscopic threads that fungi are built from.

Hyphae are the fine, thread-like filaments that make up a fungus's body. Bundles of hyphae form mycelium, and a tightly packed mass of hyphae forms the fruiting body you see above ground.

A different species that closely resembles one you're trying to identify, including dangerous mix-ups.

A look-alike is a species that can be confused with another, sometimes with serious consequences — for example, some edible mushrooms have deadly look-alikes. Always check the specific features that separate a species from its known look-alikes, not just a general resemblance. **Never eat any wild fungus identified only from an app, photo, or single feature — always confirm with an expert and a field guide, and never eat on a single identification.**

The web of fine threads a fungus grows underground or through wood — the main, long-living part of the organism.

Mycelium is the network of hyphae that makes up the bulk of a fungus, spreading through soil, leaf litter, or wood to absorb nutrients. The mushrooms we see and pick are just the temporary, spore-releasing fruiting bodies this network occasionally produces.

Living in partnership with a plant's roots, swapping nutrients for sugars.

A mycorrhizal fungus forms a symbiotic relationship with a host tree or plant's roots: the fungus helps the plant take up water and minerals, and receives sugars in return. Many prized edible species, including ceps and chanterelles, are mycorrhizal and tend to fruit near particular tree species.

Mapped land in England and Wales where you have a legal right to walk, but not necessarily to forage.

Open access land (mapped under the CRoW Act 2000) gives the public a right to walk, and often a right to roam, across certain mountains, moors, heaths, downs, and registered common land in England and Wales. That right covers being on the land — it does not automatically include a right to pick fungi, which is governed separately by landowner permission and the law on theft and protected species.

Feeding on a living host, often weakening or eventually killing it.

A parasitic fungus draws nutrients from a living plant, tree, or other organism, sometimes causing disease or death in its host over time. This is one of three broad fungal lifestyles, alongside saprotrophic (feeding on dead matter) and mycorrhizal (mutual partnership).

A tough, often shelf-like fungus that grows on wood and releases spores through pores rather than gills.

Polypores (commonly called brackets when shelf-shaped) are wood-decay fungi with a pored, often leathery or woody underside instead of gills. Many are perennial, adding a new growth layer each year, and most are inedible due to their tough or woody texture rather than toxicity — though some, like beefsteak fungus, are sought after when young.

Tiny round openings on the underside of boletes and polypores where spores are released, instead of gills.

Pores are the mouths of narrow, vertical tubes packed together on the underside of boletes and polypores. Spore colour, pore size, and how the pore surface bruises or changes colour are useful identification features.

A round or pear-shaped fungus that releases its spores as a powdery cloud rather than from gills or pores.

Puffballs produce spores internally and release them in a visible puff once the outer skin ruptures or is disturbed, rather than from gills or pores on a cap. Young, pure-white, solid-fleshed puffballs are popular edibles, but they must be checked by slicing in half to rule out an immature poisonous _Amanita_ underneath a similar-looking white skin.

A legal right to walk across certain land without needing the owner's permission — strongest in Scotland, limited elsewhere in GB.

Right to roam refers to statutory access rights to walk on land without the owner's specific permission. Scotland's Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 gives broad responsible access to most land and inland water, including for personal-use foraging. England and Wales have a narrower right to roam, limited to mapped open access land, and it covers walking rather than foraging.

A papery or membranous collar partway up the stem, left over from a veil that once covered the gills.

The ring (annulus) is a remnant of the partial veil that protected the developing gills before the cap opened. Its presence, position on the stem, and texture are important identification features, particularly for distinguishing dangerous _Amanita_ species.

Feeding on dead organic matter, like fallen leaves, dead wood, or compost.

A saprotrophic fungus breaks down and recycles nutrients from dead plant or animal material, playing a key role in decomposition. This is one of three broad fungal lifestyles, alongside mycorrhizal (living partnership with a plant) and parasitic (feeding on a living host).

The list of species fully protected by law in Great Britain — picking them is an offence even for personal use.

Schedule 8 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 lists species, including a small number of fungi, that are fully protected. Unlike most wild fungi, where personal, non-commercial picking is generally allowed under the Theft Act 1968, the personal-use defence does not apply to Schedule 8 species — picking them is an offence regardless of intent.

The pattern of colour left when a mushroom's spores fall onto paper or glass, used to confirm identification.

A spore print is made by resting a cap, gills- or pores-down, on paper (often half-white, half-black) overnight so the spores fall and reveal their true colour. Spore colour is one of the most reliable identification features, since it doesn't vary with lighting or photography the way cap colour can.

Site of Special Scientific Interest — a legally protected area where picking fungi usually needs permission.

A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) is land notified for its wildlife, geology, or habitat value and protected by law. Picking fungi within an SSSI is generally an offence without the relevant authority's consent, regardless of the general personal-use allowance elsewhere.

The stalk that holds the cap up, also called the stipe.

The stem (stipe) supports the cap above the substrate and often carries identification clues of its own — a ring, a volva, colour changes when cut, or a particular texture. Some groups, like some boletes, have a stem so distinctive it's diagnostic on its own.

The material a fungus grows on or in, such as soil, dead wood, dung, or leaf litter.

Substrate is whatever a fungus draws nutrients from or fruits out of — a fallen log, a particular tree's roots, woodchip, dung, or soil. Noting the substrate at a find is one of the most useful identification clues you can record.

The naming and classification system that groups fungi into species, genera, and families.

Taxonomy organises fungi into a nested hierarchy of relatedness — species, genus, family, and so on — and assigns each species a scientific name. Names change over time as DNA evidence reshapes the classification; an older name still in use is called a synonym of the currently accepted name, which is why field guides and databases sometimes disagree.

An old, informal word for a poisonous or inedible mushroom — not a scientific category.

Toadstool is a traditional, non-scientific term loosely used for mushrooms thought to be poisonous or otherwise unfit to eat, as opposed to "mushroom" for edible ones. It has no formal taxonomic meaning and isn't a reliable way to judge safety — confident species identification is what matters.

A protective layer of tissue that covers a young mushroom or its gills before it opens.

A veil is a membrane that shields a developing fruiting body. A universal veil wraps the whole young mushroom and can leave a volva at the base and patches on the cap when it breaks; a partial veil covers just the gills and can leave a ring on the stem. Veil remnants are key features for identifying _Amanita_ species, including dangerous ones.

A preserved physical sample of a find, kept so an identification can be checked or confirmed later.

A voucher specimen is a dried or preserved sample of a fungus kept alongside its record, allowing experts to verify or revisit the identification later — sometimes years afterwards, as taxonomy or expertise improves. Herbaria and recording schemes encourage vouchering for unusual or uncertain finds.

A cup- or sac-like structure at the base of the stem, left over from a veil that once enclosed the whole mushroom.

The volva is a remnant of the universal veil, appearing as a cup, sac, or set of scaly rings around the stem base. Checking for a volva — by gently excavating the whole base, not just pulling the mushroom up — is essential when ruling out death cap and destroying angel, since the volva can be hidden underground.