South Dakota has one of the LARGEST mycology clubs in the world! If you like to hunt mushrooms then come on down to the state that took a perfectly beautiful mountain and blew it up with TNT so we could all stare at a bunch of dead people’s faces. That’s right folks! Who needs the pacific north west when you can battle mosquitoes the size of small birds just to find half-dried up mushrooms on those rainy weeks that happen about twice a year!?
Ya, I lied. South Dakota doesn’t have a mycology club unless you consider me and my two boys a “club”. We mostly study mushrooms for foraging purposes so if you want more details on local edible varieties check here: South Dakota Foraging. However! This page serves as a place to document some of the crazy mushroom varieties we have found while hunting near Sioux Falls and the surrounding areas.
I AM NOT A MYCOLOGIST! Mushrooms on this page may be incorrectly identified. NEVER eat wild mushrooms.
I recommend mushroomexpert.com for a far better identification process.
Phallus Impudicus – Stink horn mushroom! They smell like a rotting animal corpse.
Coprinus Micaceus – Originally mis-identified as an ink cap. Took a spore print and noted the dark reddish-brown spores. Found all over the Sioux Falls neighborhood growing near stumps from removed ash trees. Finally ate some and it was very bland.
Auricularia Auricula – commonly called “wood ear” or “tree ear”. I have a secret location with hundreds of flushes during late summer rains. These are awesome in oriental soups!
Trametes versicolor – commonly called “turkey tail”. Usually I can find the same log covered in these all year long.
Ramaria Invalii? – stated to grow under coniferous litter like western hemlocks. This was found in a broad leaf forest.
Sarcoscypha Coccinea – Common name is “scarlet cup”. Edible! Found in winter or early spring along hiking trails in the woods.
Coprinus Comatus – common name “shaggy cap”. LOW CONFIDENCE on identification which was based off my old photos. These grow in our backyard after a few days of rain.
Lycoperdon Pyriforme – Edible. High chance of misidentification. I need to take samples and a spore print next time I find a log like this!
Marasmius Oreades – DELICIOUS! Commonly called the fairy ring mushroom. ID not verified so I did not eat any. This has a few toxic look-alikes.
Unknown – Found these tiny mushrooms growing in woodpecker holes on a dead tree stump in late summer 2021.
PLEASE HELP – These things are ENORMOUS! I can’t find any information in either of my mushroom books but I would love to know what they are!
Unknown Mushroom – These are huge and growing all over at a deciduous park on the East side of Sioux Falls.
Logan Spader 