The February mushroom of the month is Schizophyllum commune, the splitgill mushroom.
🙌 to @elizabethoh for naming that mushroom correctly and becoming the 1,274th member of Central Texas Mycology! Become a supporting member to stay dialed-in with events & discover next month’s mystery mushroom.
What IS it?
It is edible and delicious!
The splitgill is a highly nutritious and delightfully tasty mushroom that is an important food source in communities throughout the world, although not so much in North America. For example, in the state of Manipur, India, the splitgill is called Kanglayen. It is considered a delicacy and is a staple of many typical dishes.
WHERE DOES IT GROW?
On Every Continent (Except Antarctica)
Schizophyllum commune is a white rot fungus that grows on decaying wood and sometimes parasitic on living wood. The mushrooms will dehydrate and rehydrate over the year, allowing it to survive in both dry and wet climates. It is easily recognized with small pleurotoid morphology that lack stems and attaches like tiny bracket fungi but have folding and splitting gills rather than pores.
Other Cool FACTS
The Split gill holds the world record for the species with the most sexes - over 28,000! Nature is Queer!
Gills glow blue under a UV light. This can be a fun and effective way to ID this mushroom in the wild
Has been known to colonize the human body. The splitgill has been known in rare occasions to colonize the human body so it is not recommended to inhale the spores, especially those with compromised immune systems.
BECOME A SUPPORTING MEMBER & stay Dialed in with events & discover next month’s mystery mushroom
📸 Alan Rockefeller @forage.atx @inaturalistorg