![]() ![]() Knowing this fungus (Photo 3) is important to arborists, as it looks very similar to the well-known, root-killing and decay pathogen Armillaria (Photo 3A). Several mushroom species that are known as the Jack O’ Lantern fungus are very common on and around oaks and other species in the late summer and fall (Photos 1 & 2). Unless otherwise noted, photos courtesy of the author. The fungus appears in late summer through the fall. It is the gills of the Jack-O-Lantern mushroom that exhibit bioluminescence. This phenomenon can be demonstrated by bringing fresh and actively growing mushrooms into a dark room at night-the darker the better. Stare at the gills of the mushrooms until your eyes become accustomed to the dark, and you may eventually see the greenish glow given off by them.Īlthough the reason, if there is one, that fungi glow is unknown, some suggest it functions to attract animals or insects that eat the mushroom and aid in the dispersal of its spores.Photo 1, at right: A cluster of Jack O’ Lantern mushrooms at the base of an otherwise healthy white oak. The recognition that luminous wood was actually caused by fungi was reported in 1823, and people in the far north are reported to have marked forest trails with pieces of rotten, glowing wood to enable them to find their way back at night. The eerie light emitted by these mushrooms or by the actively growing mycelium of these fungi growing in decaying wood is a phenomenon referred to as “fox fire” and was reported as early as 382 B.C. Omphalotus illudens is also one of more than 40 species of bioluminescent fungi. illudens has been described as at first being afraid you’re going to die, then being afraid you’re not going to die, and finally, after several hours of abdominal pain and vomiting, you begin to feel better. Chanterelles are similarly colored, can occur around the same time of the year, and are good edibles. However, chanterelles are smaller in stature, have gills that are not well developed (appear more like veins), and usually grow solitarily on soil.Įxperiencing poisoning by O. Jack-O-Lanterns are attractive and have a pleasant odor, but are POISIONOUS! They are sometimes mistakenly eaten by people who think they are chanterelles. Underneath the cap are found similarly-colored narrow, decurrent (running down the stalk) gills, and a pale orange, thick stalk. The yellow-orange to orange cap is first convex in shape, becoming flat and then finally funnel-shaped with a margin that turns downward. The Jack-O-Lantern fungus produces large clusters of mushrooms around the bases of dead hardwood trees and stumps. They can also grow from buried roots. Omphalotus illudens is especially appropriate here in Champaign-Urbana since it is among the few mushrooms which display the “Illini orange” color. It gets its common name not only because of its bright pumpkin orange color and its occurrence around the time of Halloween, but also because it can exhibit an eerie glow known as bioluminescence-the production of light by a living organism-in this case, a fungus. The Jack-O-Lantern mushroom, Omphalotus illudens, is a common late-summer-to-fall mushroom of the midwestern and eastern United States. ![]() Align image left align image center align image right ![]()
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