Mushroom Expeditions: Reports and Finds

An Expedition Is More Than a Walk

When a mushroom hunter sets out into the forest with a notebook and a camera, they stop being merely a forager. They become a researcher. And the quality of their documentation determines whether a find becomes a scientific fact — or remains an anecdote.

In Portugal, where systematic mycology is still gaining momentum, every observation counts. It was citizen science that in 2024 delivered the first confirmed find of Tuber aestivum (summer truffle) in the country.

What to Document: Field Notes

It is critical to record fresh characteristics immediately in the field — many diagnostic features disappear on drying: colour, smell, texture, latex.

Minimum Data Per Specimen

Why Trees Are Everything

For mycorrhizal species (the majority of mushrooms), the partner tree is the key to identification. Slippery jack doesn’t grow without pines. Saffron milk cap — only with conifers. Silarca — with cork oak.

Always record or photograph the trees around your find.

GPS and Navigation

• Smartphone with GPS — basic tool. iNaturalist and Mushroom Tracker automatically geotag photos
• Offline maps — download before setting out (no signal in the mountains)
• Track log (GPX) — route recording to link finds to your path
• Hotspot marking — waypoints with notes: what was growing, which trees, when to return

Photo Protocol

At least 4 shots per specimen (details in the photo guide):

1. In situ — mushroom in its habitat, with scale reference
2. Cap from above — colour, texture, scales
3. Hymenophore from below — gills, tubes, spines
4. Cross-section — flesh colour, colour change after 10 minutes

For scientific value, add: side profile, stipe base (volva!), spore print.

Working with Specimens

If you are collecting herbarium specimens:

• Packaging: each specimen in aluminium foil or waxed paper (never plastic!)
• Labelling: specimen number matching field notes
• Spore print: cap hymenophore-down on white + black paper, cover with a glass, leave for 4–12 hours
• Drying: 50–60°C, for long-term herbarium storage
• Storage: zip-lock bag with silica gel; freeze at -25°C for 2 weeks to destroy insects

Discoveries: What Has Been Found in Portugal

Tuber aestivum — Summer Truffle (2024)

The first confirmed find of summer truffle in Portugal — and an example of how a properly documented expedition leads to a scientific discovery.

Specimens deposited in Herbário da Universidade de Évora (UEVH-FUNGI), DNA sequences in GenBank.

If the summer truffle is here — black truffle may well be too. Especially in Arrábida, which has limestone soils and oaks.

Cantharellus alborufescens — First Record for Iberia

Discovered through the citizen science project Cogumelos na Cidade (Coimbra) on iNaturalist. Confirmation by specialist Ibai Olariaga — first record for Portugal and first record for the Iberian Peninsula.

Orphella lusitanica — Species New to Science

Described from Portugal and Galicia, found on Plecoptera nymphs. Published in Mycologia (Volume 105, Issue 3). The name “lusitanica” honours Lusitania.

Hydnum ovoideisporum and H. vesterholtii

Two new hedgehog fungus species described from the Iberian Peninsula. Distinguished by ovoid basidiospores. Proof that even well-studied genera can harbour undescribed species.

Citizen Science: iNaturalist and BioDiversity4All

BioDiversity4All

Portugal’s iNaturalist node, founded in 2010. Currently: 276,000+ records from 10,400+ species. Every observation with “Research Grade” status enters the global GBIF database.

Cogumelos na Cidade Project (Coimbra)

• Organiser: MyCoLAB, University of Coimbra
• Participants: 151 observers
• Results: ~2,100 observations, 200+ species with “Research Grade”
• Discoveries: Cantharellus alborufescens (first record for Iberia), Favolaschia calocera (range expansion of an invasive species)

90 of 164 species were represented by just a single observation — this shows how little we know even about urban fungi.

How to Get Started

1. Install iNaturalist (free)
2. Photograph following the protocol — at least 3 angles
3. Upload your observation with GPS coordinates
4. AI will suggest species — the community will confirm or refine
5. With 2+ confirmations, the observation gets “Research Grade” status

Where to Go: Key Locations

Trás-os-Montes (North)

Montesinho — 200+ edible species. Chestnut and oak forests. Mycological Centre in Vinhais. Expeditions organised by A Pantorra (Mogadouro).

Serra da Estrela and Fundão

Alcaide — 300+ species in the surrounding forests. The Míscaros Festival (3rd weekend of November) includes guided scientific walks in the forest.

Alentejo (Montado)

Silarca — the “white gold of the montado”. February–April, cork oaks. Caesar’s mushroom, desert truffle.

Arrábida (Setúbal)

17,000 hectares of natural park, limestone soils (unique in Portugal). Potential for truffles. More in the Arrábida story.

Sintra

Wet Atlantic forests, mosses, Mycena. Parques de Sintra organise regular mycological walks.

Expedition Report Template

Keep an expedition journal. Here is the structure used by mycological associations:

1. General Information

• Date, route (with GPS track), participants, weather
• Duration, km covered

2. Habitat Description

• Ecosystem type, altitude, dominant trees
• Understorey, soil, coarse woody debris

3. Species List

4. Notable Finds

• Rare species, new records for the region, unusual observations

5. Statistics

• Total species, edible, toxic, unidentified

6. Conclusions

• Season assessment, recommendations for next visit

Mushroom Journal

Beyond expedition reports, keep a personal mushroom journal — like a lifer list for birdwatchers:

• Record every species found — even unidentified ones
• Sketch — drawing forces you to notice details that photos miss
• Note rainy periods — to correlate with mushroom appearances
• Review before expeditions — refresh your memory of hotspots

Tools: paper notebook (Rite in the Rain — waterproof), iNaturalist, Google Sheets for statistics, Obsidian/Notion for a digital journal.

Sources

1. Santos-Silva C. et al. — First Record of Summer Truffle (Tuber aestivum) in Portugal // Parasitologia, 2024
2. Cogumelos na Cidade — citizen science project on iNaturalist
3. BioDiversity4All — 10 years recording Portuguese biodiversity
4. NAMA — Making Scientific Vouchers of Macrofungi
5. Mushrooming Communities: A Field Guide to Mycology in the Community Forests of Portugal // Sustainability, 2017
6. A Pantorra — Associação Micológica (pantorra.pt)
7. NEMF Foray Data Archive 1987–2018