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Huron Mountains: Mushroom Paradise
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DECEMBER 6, 2004 -- Mycologist Dana L. Richter chronicles multitudes of remarkable mushrooms from the Huron Mountains in Michigan Botanist, Vol. 43, No. 2.
Richter, a research scientist II in the School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science, has been surveying mushrooms on the 20,000-acre Huron Mountain Club property for years, concentrating on the 7,000 acres of old growth forest near the south shore of Lake Superior. His article, "Rare and Unusual Fungi (Basidiomycota) of the Huron Mountains, Marquette County, Michigan," builds on the works of the late Alexander H. Smith of the University of Michigan, who collected extensively in the Huron Mountains in the 1960s and 1970s and named many new species.
"The area is comparable to the Sylvania Tract or the Porcupine Mountains wilderness areas," Richter says. Throughout most of the property, there are no vehicles and few feet, so the land is very quiet and undisturbed.
Plus, the region has some unusual geology. "This is unique," Richter said. "It's an area of ancient mountains."
As a result, you can find mushrooms there that you're not likely to find anywhere else around here, at least not in great numbers.
"It makes it quite a special field research station," Richter said.
Among the 23 mushrooms he characterizes is Laetiporus huroniensis, a ruffled, bright yellow-and-orange sulfur-shelf mushroom. It was recently named a separate species, based in part upon Richter's collection.
Another of his favorites is Tricholoma magnivalare, which he describes as "a robust, firm, cream-colored mushroom with a sharp fragrance." Says Richter, "It's a very special mushroom out West," where it's made into a gourmet paste used in Japanese cuisine. "But it's very uncommon here."
And there's Volvariella bombycina, a mushroom so rare that Richter himself has only seen it twice. With it's velvety, alabaster caps and stems growing out of light brown, scalloped cups, it is, as he says, "strikingly beautiful."
Richter's work is made possible by the Huron Mountain Wildlife Foundation, which facilitates scientific research within the Huron Mountain Club. Yes, he says, it's an extraordinary place to study these fascinating fungi.
"They are so diverse in their textures and colors," Richter says, adding, "It's truly a wonderful world." |
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