🥾 Guide: Dr. Liz Bowman

📅 Date: Thursday, May 14, 2026

⏰ Time: 9:30 A. M. - 1230 P.M.

📍 Location: UT Stengl Lost Pines Research Station

🎟 Cost: Free with Registration

Join us for a guided workshop to learn how to find, document, and properly collect mushrooms for submission to the University of Texas Fungarium.

A Fungarium is a specialized scientific collection of preserved, dried fungal specimens. These collections are critical for documenting biodiversity, identifying unknown species, and tracking environmental changes in where species are found over time. Despite their importance, Fungi remain vastly understudied—only ~150,000 species have been formally described, while an estimated 2.2 to 3.8 million species exist worldwide. In Texas, fungal surveys are especially limited compared to other regions of the United States.

The University of Texas at Austin established a new Fungarium in 2021, which has already grown to over 500 specimens. This workshop is an opportunity to contribute to that effort while learning hands-on skills used by researchers and community scientists alike.

If this is your first time collecting fungi, WELCOME! We will cover the basics of fungal identification, ethical collecting practices, and how to prepare specimens for long-term preservation. Please note that mushrooms mainly appear when the ground is wet from recent rain. If there has not been rain, we will be using store bought mushrooms for demonstration purposes.

What to bring:

Notebook and pen/pencil
Smartphone
Drinking water
Bug spray
Appropriate hiking clothing & closed-toed shoes for the weather and terrain

Workshop Schedule:

9:45 AM - 10:00 AM Check in at the registration table when you arrive at BFL

10:00 AM - 11:00 AM Overview of fungal identification & speciman preparation process

11:00 AM - 12:00 PM Field collection walk & speciman processing if weather allows🥾 Guide: Dr. Liz Bowman