Hey, so this is just about the most fitting forum I could find to post on and I'm still new so again, if this isn't a good spot point me to the right one.
I think it would be a good idea to have some kind of quiz for people to take to sharpen their mushroom spotting skills and to get familiar with the differences between lookalikes. I thought of this because come winter, I'm going to be going out for my first time and picking P. Subaeruginosa, and I've noticed there are a few lookalikes people talk about. I just want to rehearse myself on the specific differences so when I get out there I won't have to potentially miss mushies because I didn't realise they were subs, or worse, pick something I think IS a sub. I'm sure some other people feel the same way, I learn best by looking and doing, not reading.
Thanks, and PM me links to anything like this that might already exist. Also take down if wrong spot to post.
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First of all, here's a link to a description and lots of great pictures of Psilocybe subaeruginosa:
https://www.shroomery.org/12515/Psilocybe-subaeruginosa
There are a few look alikes you should familiarise yourself with, although when you get the hang of it you'll know how to separate them.
There is the deadly Galerina marginata which also grows on dead wood, but has a rusty brown rather than dark purple spore print, it also has an annulus (ring) on the stem (most of the time at least, it can disappear due to weather or age).
Then there is Leratiomyces ceres, which honestly isn't that difficult to tell apart since it most of the time has a red cap, as opposed to the caramel to buff colored cap of P. subaeruginosa. It is also easy to distinguish due to its orange bruising on the stem. it is nevertheless a species often found in the same habitat, and thus useful to be aware of.
Also study the general appearance and features of genera such as Inocybe (many dangerously toxic species), Hebeloma (also toxic) and Cortinarius. In the latter genus there are several species with bluish and purple tones and are occasionally mistaken for blue bruising species of Psilocybe.
Please note that while www.mushroomexpert.com is a very useful resource, it contains predominantly species from Northern America, and although quite a few of the same species are known to grow in Australia, there are many species unique to your country that aren't always easy to find described or pictured on the internet.
You should also use www.mushroomobserver.org and www.inaturalist.org to browse observations and pictures posted from Australia, so that you might study features and learn the names of the different species growing there.
As for making a quiz to test your skills on, that sounds like good fun albeit a little work is needed to make a proper one.
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