First, it really does look like a hawk’s wing, which is neat. Photo: Dru!Ĭolorado mushroom lovers favor this variety for a few reasons. Sarcodon Imbricatus (hawk’s wing) Sarcodon Imbricatus. The artist conk fungus is hard, inedible, and can reach sizes of up to 39 inches in diameter. It can live in living and dead trees, but you should be worried if you catch it living on a tree you care about, because it causes wood decay. Instead, the artists conk fungus takes the appearance of strange, rounded shelves that grow straight out of the bodies of trees.
This otherworldly fungus looks nothing like the conventional mushrooms you’d find in your local grocery store. Here are some of the wild mushrooms in Colorado, in no particular order: Ganoderma Applanatum (artists conk) Ganoderma Applanatum. Instead, you’ll have to settle for learning about some of the state’s more notable shrooms.
With so many mushroom varieties to be found in Colorado, there’s no way to list them all here. The article features an interview with mycologist Paul Stamets, who believes European countries known for their mycological offerings like France and Italy host a mere fraction of the mushrooms that Colorado does. Photo: Jessia GrantĪccording to a 2011 article published in the New York Times, Colorado hosts the second-largest mycological habitat in the nation, and is home to between 2,000 and 3,000 species of mushrooms.
But for those with reliable knowledge and experience foraging mushrooms, Colorado offers edible varieties that are highly sought after by everyone from home chefs to high-end restaurants. It should go without saying, but it is an incredibly bad idea to harvest and eat mushrooms in Colorado, or anywhere else, without knowing exactly what you’re doing. Particularly in the state’s high elevation mountain regions, you’ll find everything from choice edible varieties of some of the tastiest mushrooms in the world, to species that can easily kill or maim you for life if ingested. You might not realize it, but Colorado is home to one of the most diverse mycological habitats in the world.
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