Is this a shaggy parasol

Hi everyone, I'm new here

Seeing there are a few people on here who know a thing or two about mushrooms I thought I would ask for a ID.

I found this growing in my chicken run last year.




I dont know enough to really tell what it was but from searching the web I got a tentative identification of shaggy parasol, but I dont know enough to be at all sure. I'm interested because, after a little investigation, it seems the mycelium it came from is pretty big, a patch maybe 8" by 6" so they mite well come up again. And half of that runs under the chicken run so if its something less pleasant I mite need to keep an eye out to stop the chooks getting holed of them if they come up again. I put a bucket over that one as soon as I saw it to keep them off it but it was right next to the back door of the run and a real pain to get around .

Many thanks,

The photos show a mushroom that would appear to in the Agaricus genus, a group which includes the common "button" mushroom you see in the supermarket. I do not think it is a shaggy parasol, which is in a different group. Agaricus mushrooms sometimes can be identified by the chocolate brown spore print. The gills start out a pink color before turning brown from the spores. Agaricus includes some of the best edible gourmet mushrooms such as the prince (A. augustus), but also includes several mildly toxic species that go under "the lose your lunch bunch" group. If I were you, I would mulch the area, keep it moist and keep the chickens away from it. Then if you get more mushrooms, take a spore print (it should be brown) . You might have a valuable species like Agaricus bitorquis, one of the best one for the table and one that I grew on manure compost years ago. This species is delicious and loves lime-rich, compacted soil around barns. You might also have Agaricus hondensis, a mildly toxic species. Keep careful notes on the odor and look for yellow staining on the cap and stem, because this will help you determine if it is a good edible species. "Mushrooms Demystified", by David Arora, has a lot of info on the agaricus group. Keep posting more photos and info here, too.

It definitely looks like Agaricus, but I'm wondering if it may be A. silvicola -- a common name is the deer mushroom. Not because deer eat them, but because they usually pop up about the same time of year as deer season and hunters like to cook them with venison (at least thats the story I heard for it). They start out white and egg shaped, then open up almost flat and get kind of pale pinkish-tan as they age. They have a pink-brown spore print turning more cinnamon colored with age. One thing to look for is a "veil" or little tattered looking ring near the top of the stem. Watch out for deadly look-a-likes though. The Destroying Angel looks nearly identical in the early stages and also has a veil. However the Destroying Angel has a white spore print and stays pure white as it matures. It can also kill you, while A. silvicola is edible. Be very careful!

I agree with Deb that beginners should be very careful and especially avoid eating all white mushrooms with white gills and white spore prints. However, as a former professional mushroom picker/wildcrafter/grower and amateur mycologist, I feel it is important to clarify some information here. Agaricus silvicola is the latin name for the woodland agaricus, a species I have eaten and collected only from older forests underneath tanoak and cedar. This "forest-loving", brown-spored species is not typically found around barns and chicken coops and looks a little bit different than the mushroom in the photos. The "deer mushroom" is the most popular common name for Pluteus cervinus, a species that is not directly related to agaricus. This pink-spored species is common on logs and sawdust piles and does not look like the one in the photos at all. I have also collected and eaten this species as well, although it is not one of my favorites. I would guess that "deer mushroom" might also be another common name for an agaricus species as well, at least for some folks. Some mushroom common names can be VERY confusing and refer to more than one species!

Thanks for the info .

Unfortunately the chicken run is fixed so I cant really keep the chooks off that spot, I'll just have to keep an eye out. Although when that one came up they didn't seem too interested in eating it, I just thought I would be cautious. They would have probably scratched it to bits anyway. At least it doesn't look like it could be anything really toxic, is that right? Just a bad stomach.

If another one comes up I'll get some better quality pics and have a go at making a spore print for a proper ID.

I've just realised where you're located - I don't usually get involved in identifying fungi as they are so variable in different parts of the world, but I'll consult my other half, who has spent many many decades living in the midlands, raising chickens, and gathering all kinds of fungi, and see what he has to say.

Burra Maluca wrote:I've just realised where you're located - I don't usually get involved in identifying fungi as they are so variable in different parts of the world, but I'll consult my other half, who has spent many many decades living in the midlands, raising chickens, and gathering all kinds of fungi, and see what he has to say.

Like Burra, I just realized that you are in England. I guess I should look more closely at localities before answering this sort of question. This does point up a problem with species identification though. Not only do mushroom species vary from place to place, as M.K. Dorje has pointed out, but it also helps to know the Scientific names as well as any locally common names for them. M.K. brought up a perfect example -- his "deer mushroom" is not the same species (or even the same genus) as the deer mushroom I find around here. I live in Missouri, while he lives in Oregon, but even though we are both in the U.S. just that much geography between us can make a major difference in the species we see. He is also correct that Agaricus silvicola is found in forests/woodlands. That is where I also find it in abundance as we have larege expanses of oak/hickory forests here. It was late, and I wasn't really thinking -- I should have caught the fact that it was growing on chicken manure and not amongst leaf litter. Next time, I won't try to make IDs when I am crossed-eyed from lack of sleep! This is why it always helps for first time mushroom hunters to go with experienced friends -- AND take field guides, and do all the proper identification tests (ESPECIALLY getting spore prints).

Unfortunately my other half didn't recognise it, except to say it's *not* a parasol. I'd love a better shot of the top of the cap. I don't have access to all my books at the moment either, but with some better photos maybe someone can help.

Have you tried the Wild About Britain site - there's a few really dedicated people on there with a burning desire to identify anything.

Burra Maluca wrote:Unfortunately my other half didn't recognise it, except to say it's *not* a parasol. I'd love a better shot of the top of the cap. I don't have access to all my books at the moment either, but with some better photos maybe someone can help.

Have you tried the Wild About Britain site - there's a few really dedicated people on there with a burning desire to identify anything.

I'm kicking myself for not getting some better pics of it now. I kept forgetting to take my camera with me when I fed the chickens so those were taken with my mobile.

I'll have a look at that site, thanks for the link.