A Detailed Guide: Collecting Mushrooms for DNA Barcoding
This guide covers the essential steps for community scientists, as presented in the April 21, 2026, live stream with Walker Moore of the Longhorn Mycological Society.
Before You Go: The Golden Rules for Science
Goal: Your collection is not just for ID—it’s for a fungarium (a preserved mushroom collection) and potentially DNA sequencing. Every detail matters.
One Mushroom = One Voucher: You are not just taking a sample; you are creating a permanent scientific record.
Safety First: Never eat or even taste a mushroom for identification. Some are deadly.
Step 1: Find a Good Specimen
Choose wisely: Look for a fresh, intact, mature mushroom. Avoid old, waterlogged, bug-eaten, or rotting specimens. The DNA degrades quickly in poor specimens.
Get the whole thing: You need both the cap and the base of the stem (where it attaches to the wood or ground). This underground part often has crucial features for ID.
Step 2: Record Vital Field Notes (Do This FIRST)
Before you pick the mushroom, document where it lives. Use a notebook, camera, or a field data app like iNaturalist. Key info:
Date
Precise location (GPS coordinates are best).
Habitat/Substrate: What is it growing on? Be specific:
On soil (bare, leafy, mossy?)
On wood (dead log, living tree, stump, fallen branch? What tree species, if known?)
On dung, other fungi, or debris.
Associated plants/trees: Note the dominant trees within 10 meters (e.g., "under live oak and juniper").
Light/moisture: Shady, full sun, recently rained, dry.
Take Photos – The Required Angles (See this visual guide)
Wide habitat shot
Step back 2–5 meters
Show the mushroom in its surroundings (forest floor, log, or tree base)
Proves ecological context and nearby plant life
Mid-range shot
Stand 0.5–1 meter away
Show the mushroom and its immediate substrate (e.g., "growing from that crack in the dead log")
Captures relationship between mushroom and what it grows on
Top of cap shot (directly overhead)
Hold camera perpendicular (straight down) over the cap
Capture cap shape, color, texture, and any patterns (scales, streaks, warts)
Do not tilt the camera – shoot flat to the cap surface
Underside shot (gills/pores/spines) – in situ
Do not pick the mushroom yet
Carefully brush away leaves or flip camera at ground level
If impossible to see without picking, note "underside not visible in situ" in your journal
(After picking in Step 3, take another clean underside shot)
Side profile shot (ground level)
Crouch or lie down at ground level
Show the stem (stipe) and how it joins the cap
Also show the base of the stem entering the substrate
Stem base shot (taken AFTER picking – see Step 3)
After carefully digging up the mushroom
Photograph the intact base that was underground
Shows basal bulb, root-like structures (rhizomorphs), or attached debris
Scale reference (include in at least one shot)
Place a coin, key, field ruler, or known object next to the mushroom
If no scale object, write in your notes: "cap approx ___ cm wide"
Pro Tips (from Walker Moore's class)
Do not rearrange nature. Take "before" shots before moving any leaves or grass
Take more photos than you think you need – digital film is free
Use natural light when possible; flash washes out color and texture
If using flash, write "flash used" in your journal
After Photographing – Then Collect
After picking, take one additional photo of the intact stem base (the part that was underground) and the underside now that you can see it clearly.
Step 3: Collect the Mushroom
Clean hands/tools: Ideally, wear disposable gloves. Use a clean knife. You want to avoid contaminating the mushroom with your own DNA or other fungi.
Dig, don’t pull: Gently dig around the base to get the entire stem base intact. You can cut the very bottom dirty part off, but keep the rest of the stem base.
One specimen per bag: Place only one mushroom species per bag (paper bag or wax paper bag is best). Never use plastic bags – they trap moisture, causing the mushroom to rot and mold, destroying DNA.
Step 4: Preserve for DNA (The Critical Part)
DNA breaks down quickly at room temperature, especially in heat.
Within 1-2 hours of picking: You must dry the specimen.
Dehydrator: Use a food dehydrator at low temperature (below 45°C / 113°F) until cracker-dry.
Silica gel drying (best for DNA): Place the fresh mushroom in a small, sealable container (like a Ziploc) completely covered with indicating silica gel (the kind that changes color when saturated). The mushroom should be dry and crackly in 1-3 days.
NO heat sources like ovens or direct sun, as high heat fragments DNA.
Step 5: Package for the Lab
Once cracker-dry (it snaps, doesn't bend), put the dried mushroom into a labeled paper envelope or zip bag with a tiny silica gel pack.
Label MUST include: Your collector name, a unique specimen number (e.g., iNaturalist ID), the date, and GPS coordinates. This ties your physical collection to your field notes. Use the iNaturalist ID if possible because it contains all this meta data.
What Happens Next at a Lab Like Mycota Labs?
A tiny piece of the dried mushroom is taken for DNA extraction.
A specific "barcode" gene (usually the ITS region – Internal Transcribed Spacer) is amplified using a process called PCR.
The DNA is sequenced and compared to a giant online reference library (like GenBank or UNITE).
Final Tips from Walker Moore’s Talk
Don’t worry if you can’t ID it. You aren't expected to know the species. Your job is excellent collection and preservation. The DNA will reveal its identity.
Beware of cross-contamination. Don't touch one mushroom and then another without changing gloves. If you drop a mushroom on the ground, you can still collect it (just note "dirty" in your notes).
Connect with a local fungarium or mycology society (like Central Texas Mycology or Longhorn Mycological Society). They can provide you with silica gel, collection kits, and a place to send your dried specimens.
Your simple kit:
Notebook & pen
Small trowel or knife
Paper bags or wax paper bags
Silica gel + small airtight container
Camera & GPS (your smartphone works)
By following this guide, your mushroom hunt turns into real scientific discovery – one sample at a time.
