Books
  • Davis, Sommer, and Menge (2012)
    Field Guide to Mushrooms of Western North America
    Publisher: University of California Press
    Paperback ISBN-13: 978-0520271081 (472 pages)
    A field guide with over 300 species of the region's most common, distinctive, and ecologically important mushrooms. It includes color illustrations showing top and side views of mushrooms with informative text, but still light enough to be carried into the woods. Urban mushrooms are included to help identify backyard fungi, plus information on edibility, and look-alikes, both dangerous and benign.
  • Desjardin, Wood, and Stevens (2015)
    California Mushrooms: The Comprehensive Identification Guide
    Publisher: Timber Press
    Hardcover ISBN-13: 978-1604693539 (560 pages)
    A field guide with over 300 species of the region's most common, distinctive, and ecologically important mushrooms. It includes color illustrations showing top and side views of mushrooms with informative text, but still light enough to be carried into the woods. Urban mushrooms are included to help identify backyard fungi, plus information on edibility, and look-alikes, both dangerous and benign.
  • Siegel and Schwartz (2016)
    Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast: A Comprehensive Guide to the Fungi of Coastal Northern California
    Publisher: Potter/Ten Speed/Harmony/Rodale
    Paperback ISBN-13: 978-1607748175 (608 pages)
    A field guide that will help beginning and experienced mushroom hunters alike to find and identify mushrooms, from common to rare, delicious to deadly, and interesting to beautiful. This user-friendly reference covers coastal California from Monterey County to the Oregon border with full treatments of more than 750 species, and references to hundreds more. Each species profile pairs a photograph with an in-depth description, as well as notes on ecology, edibility, toxicity, and look-alike species.
  • David Arora (1986)
    Mushrooms Demystified, 2nd edition
    Publisher: Potter/Ten Speed/Harmony/Rodale
    Paperback ISBN-13: 978-0898151695 (1020 pages)
    The best and most complete mushroom field guide and reference book. It includes descriptions and keys to more than 2,000 species of mushrooms, with more than 950 photographs. Mushroom authority David Arora provides a beginner's checklist of the 70 most distinctive and common mushrooms, plus detailed chapters on terminology, classification, habitats, mushroom cookery, mushroom toxins, and the meanings of scientific mushroom names.
    NOTE: Mycological names have changed a bit since 1986. Current mushroom names in this book may be found using online resources.
  • David Arora (1991)
    All That the Rain Promises and More: A Hip Pocket Guide to Western Mushrooms
    Publisher: Ten Speed Press
    Paperback ISBN-13: 978-0898153880 (256 pages)
    An illustrated guide to identifying 200 Western mushrooms - whether edible, poisonous, or medicinal - by their key features. The book includes detailed descriptions as well as recipes, stories, and information on uses of various species such as for dying hair and clothing or playing games.
  • Taylor Lockwood (2001)
    Treasures from the Kingdom of Fungi: Featuring Photographs of Mushrooms and Other Fungi from Around the World
    Publisher: Taylor F Lockwood
    Hardcover ISBN-13: 978-0970944900 (128 pages)
    A coffee-table book with more than 270 spectacular color photos portraying a wondrous array of mushrooms and other fungi from six continents. It appears that the only "new" copies out there are on his website Mushroom Pro where you'll also find posters, mouse pads, placemats, and DVDs.
LAMS Resources
Besides the external resources of information available to you through websites, books, and journals, you may be able to get the answers to your questions right here with LAMS. People interested in mushrooms are a diverse crowd, and if you're interested in cooking, ecology, photography, identification, health, or something else, there's probably a person that can answer your question or get you pointed in the right direction. And it probably helps to get information from multiple sources so you can make your own decisions on what works best for you. A member of the LAMS Council would be a good place to start, or perhaps the speaker that has given a presentation at one of our events. Volunteering is also a good way to meet people and find out about other opportunities. You can reach out to any of the people on our Contacts page to find out about how to volunteer.