Gilled Mushrooms
Gilled mushrooms are the shape most people picture, and the largest, most varied group of all. That range is exactly why the form demands respect.
Australian Honey Fungus
Armillaria luteobubalinaAustralian honey fungus forms dense autumn clusters with honey-brown scaled caps, cream-white spores…
Autumn Skullcap
Galerina marginataAutumn skullcap is a small rusty-spored mushroom on decaying wood that can contain amatoxins at levels…
Big Laughing Gym
Gymnopilus junoniusBig laughing gym is a large, bitter, orange-rust wood-decay mushroom with crowded gills, a stem ring, and a…
Bitter Poisonpie
Hebeloma sinapizansBitter poisonpie is a large clay-brown Hebeloma with rusty spores, a coarse scaley ringless stem, and radish…
Blackedge Bonnet
Mycena pelianthinaBlackedge bonnet is a small lilac-gray woodland Mycena whose pale gills carry a narrow dark purple-brown…
Blood-Red Webcap
Cortinarius sanguineusBlood-red webcap is a small conifer-woodland Cortinarius colored deep red across cap, young gills, stem, and…
Brown Roll-Rim
Paxillus involutusBrown roll-rim is a poisonous mushroom group with two different clinical concerns. Gastrointestinal illness…
Burnt Knight
Tricholoma ustaleBurnt knight is a brown, wet-sticky, white-spored Tricholoma with notched pale gills that develop brown spots…
Caesar's Mushroom
Amanita caesareaCaesar's mushroom is the exception people quote at anybody who says never eat an Amanita, and the exception…
Common Inkcap
Coprinopsis atramentariaCommon inkcap is a gray, clustered mushroom that digests its own gills into black liquid. Its defining safety…
Copper Roll Rim
Paxillus cuprinusThe copper roll rim is one of the mushrooms that used to be called brown roll rim. Molecular work published…
Deadly Dapperling
Lepiota brunneoincarnataDeadly dapperling is a small pink-brown scaled *Lepiota* with free white gills, a fragile ring zone, and a…
Deadly Fibrecap
Inosperma erubescensDeadly fibrecap is a pale fibrous woodland mushroom that develops brick-red stains across its cap, gills…
Deadly Galerina
Galerina marginataA small brown mushroom on wood can carry the same toxin as a death cap. The check that matters is the spore…
Deadly Parasol
Lepiota subincarnataDeadly parasol is a small scaled *Lepiota* with free white gills, a fragile veil zone, and felty pink-brown…
Deadly Webcap
Cortinarius rubellusDeadly webcap is a tawny, pointed webcap that contains orellanine. The defining danger is delayed acute…
Death Cap
Amanita phalloidesA possible death cap ingestion is an emergency before the species is certain. For prevention, inspect the…
Destroying Angel
Amanita bisporigeraA destroying angel is white from cap to spore print, which is exactly why it gets picked. Check for free…
Eastern Flat-Top Agaricus
Agaricus placomycesEastern flat-top Agaricus is a woodland mushroom with a white cap covered in gray-brown scales…
Enoki
Flammulina filiformisEnoki is a farmed crop, and almost nothing about the packet describes a mushroom anybody would meet in a…
False Death Cap
Amanita citrinaThe name is a warning about your eyes rather than a rating of the mushroom. A false death cap is called that…
Felt-Ringed Agaricus
Agaricus hondensisFelt-ringed agaricus is a poisonous western woodland mushroom with free gills that mature from pink toward…
Field Mushroom
Agaricus campestrisThe field mushroom is the wild relative of the mushroom in your shopping, and it is identified by a sequence…
Fly Agaric
Amanita muscariaEurasian fly agaric is the scarlet Amanita with loose white veil patches, white free gills, a hanging ring…
Fool's Conecap
Pholiotina rugosaFool's conecap is a tiny moisture-changing brown mushroom with attached rusty-brown gills and a membranous…
Fool's Mushroom
Amanita vernaFool's mushroom, *Amanita verna*, is a deadly white amanita associated with European broadleaf woodland in…
Fool's Webcap
Cortinarius orellanusFool's webcap is a deadly orange-brown woodland mushroom whose gills and fine cobweb veil become rusty as…
Gemmed Amanita
Amanita gemmataThe gemmed amanita is a pale yellow woodland mushroom that is poisonous, and that is the easy part. The hard…
Ghost Fungus
Omphalotus nidiformisGhost fungus is the mushroom everybody knows for glowing green in the dark, and that is the one fact about it…
Green-Spored Parasol
Chlorophyllum molybditesGreen-spored parasol is a large poisonous lawn mushroom whose gills change from white to gray-green as spores…
Inky Mushroom
Agaricus moelleriThe inky mushroom, *Agaricus moelleri*, is a poisonous gray-scaled Agaricus that yellows strongly at the stem…
Ivory Funnel
Clitocybe dealbataIvory funnel is a small pale grassland mushroom with a frosted cap, crowded white gills that run down a short…
Jack O'Lantern
Omphalotus illudensA Jack O'Lantern is the orange mushroom you learn so you can reject it fast. The field pattern is true sharp…
Liberty Cap
Psilocybe semilanceataLiberty cap is a small grassland mushroom with a sharply conical, hygrophanous cap and a dark purple-brown…
Livid Pinkgill
Entoloma sinuatumLivid pinkgill is a large pale *Entoloma* whose broad gills begin yellowish white and mature to salmon pink…
Matsutake
Tricholoma matsutakeThe matsutake is sold by smell. A strong spicy cinnamon and pine scent is what makes it the most valuable…
Oyster Mushroom
Pleurotus ostreatusOyster mushrooms are one of the best beginner edibles because the growth pattern is so practical. Look for…
Panther Cap
Amanita pantherinaEuropean panther cap combines a brown, white-warted cap with white free gills, a fragile ring, and a bulb…
Saffron Milk Cap
Lactarius deliciosusThe saffron milk cap does three things that read as spoilage to anyone meeting it for the first time, and all…
Shaggy Mane
Coprinus comatusThe shaggy mane is the only common edible mushroom that destroys itself while you are deciding about it. It…
Shaggy Parasol
Chlorophyllum rhacodesThe shaggy parasol is a good edible mushroom with one test standing between it and a serious mistake, and the…
Shiitake
Lentinula edodesShiitake is a cultivated hardwood mushroom with a deep savory flavor. The practical rule is simple: cook…
Sulphur Knight
Tricholoma sulphureumYou will smell this mushroom before you reach it. The sulphur knight carries a strong smell of coal gas or…
Sulphur Tuft
Hypholoma fasciculareSulphur tuft forms tight yellow clusters on dead wood. Its tan-centered caps, crowded gills that shift from…
The Blusher
Amanita rubescensThe blusher is eaten across Europe and sits in the genus that kills people. An edible reputation does not…
Velvet Shank
Flammulina velutipesVelvet shank is a north-temperate, cold-season wood mushroom with a sticky amber cap, pale gills, and a…
Western Destroying Angel
Amanita ocreataWestern destroying angel is California's native white amatoxin-producing *Amanita*. Its free white gills…
White Fibrecap
Inocybe geophyllaWhite fibrecap is a small pointed white mushroom whose silky cap, attached gills, ringless stem, and…
Wood Blewit
Lepista nudaA lilac mushroom in leaf litter stops people walking, and that is the whole problem with the wood blewit. It…
Yellow Knight
Tricholoma equestreYellow knight is a ringless, yellow-gilled Tricholoma of poor sandy ground under conifers. Fatal French case…
Yellow Stainer
Agaricus xanthodermusThe yellow stainer is probably the most frequently eaten poisonous mushroom in the world, and the reason is…
The classic form
A gilled mushroom carries thin, blade-like plates under the cap. The gills make and drop the spores, and their color, spacing, and attachment are core identification clues.
The widest range, the highest stakes
This single form holds fine edibles and the most lethal mushrooms on earth. The deadly Amanitas are gilled, and so are many favorites.
Warning
Because the gilled group is so broad, shape alone tells you almost nothing about safety. Always read the gills, ring, base, and spore print together.
What to check on the gills
Note how the gills attach to the stem, whether they are crowded or spaced, and their color. Then take a spore print, because gill color and spore color are not always the same.