North Spore

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Exciting to see more and more research highlighting Turkey Tail's bioactive compounds and emphasizing its antioxidant properties. This study also outlines potential benefits for cardiovascular health and neuroprotection - promising avenues for further research.

Join us this Saturday, July 6 at Pineland Farms in New Gloucester for a relaxing mushroom walk after all that partying!

@fungaldiversitysurvey back again for the NAMA takeover! Thanks to funding from the State of California and the California Institute for Biodiversity, FUNDIS is engaged in the work of generating thousands of scientific grade macrofungi collections in California. This is a large-scale, long term project that we simply call CA FUNDIS. Through our work in CA FUNDIS we are making California a model for the rest of North America, to demonstrate the degree of civic engagement that is possible in the process of documenting and protecting fungi. One of our most recent collections in the CA FUNDIS project is this amazing fungal parasite of flying insects (iNat ID: 224641834). This fungus-on-fly was collected and photographed only four days ago by Stu Pickell @sir.myxo.lot in the mountains surrounding Los Angeles, CA. We have not been able to analyze the DNA of this new find yet, however our best guess is that it resides in the complex Entomophthora muscae for now. At FUNDIS, we use DNA barcoding to help determine the identity of fungal species. Barcoding is a term for sequencing short segments of DNA, which differ depending on the species, and therefore act as unique barcodes. Although DNA barcoding is a valuable technological tool for resolving species relationships, its power comes in synchrony with other taxonomic tools such as location, habitat, and macro- and microscopic features. Utilizing the entire toolbox, FUNDIS can help expand the knowledge of taxonomists and allow them to more accurately identify fungi. Your donations make a huge difference in our ability to conduct field research, perform DNA sequencing, and publish our findings for the greater good of the scientific community. Please consider donating to our mission!! See our bio for the donation link. Every contribution, big or small, helps us fund our research projects. Your generous support will allow FUNDIS to contribute valuable data to genomic and biodiversity studies, and ultimately have a larger impact on habitat conservation for rare fungal species in California, and beyond! Photo credit: Stu Pickell

Lion’s mane (Hericium erinaceus) also known as monkey head mushroom has been used as both food and medicine in China for hundreds of years, with its history traceable back to the Sui Dynasty (521 - 618 CE). It was traditionally used as a tonic for supporting overall health and longevity. Buddhist monks reportedly used its powder as a tea to enhance brain power and heighten their focus during meditation. In recent studies, this mushroom has been found to impart a variety of benefits, including potential neuron growth in the brain, ulcer prevention in the stomach, and anti-inflammatory properties which help protect cells from damage. In New England, lion's mane is also known as the bearded tooth mushroom or Satyr's Beard, and can be foraged from standing trunks or fallen logs of hardwood trees from August to November.

Some BTS from the North Spore production team on a shoot today - we've got a new instructional video in the works 📽 🍄

New documentary! 🎥 "In Search of a Lost Fungus" follows a team of mycologists from the Fungi Foundation —led by Daniela Torres Acuña— on their expedition to the Nahuelbuta mountain range in #Chile, searching for the Big Puma Fungus (Austroomphaliaster nahuelbutensis), a species that had only been documented once by Chilean mycologist Norberto Garrido in the 1980s and was part of Re:wild's Search for Lost Species. The expedition team found two potential candidates—one of them discovered with the help of local mushroom enthusiasts. The samples underwent DNA analysis, comparing the mushrooms collected in May 2023 to the DNA of the original mushroom Garrido collected more than 40 years ago. After several months, it was shown that the two were the same species. Therefore, we can say the Big Puma Fungus has been officially rediscovered! Watch the short film of this exciting expedition. Directed by Catalina Infante, with Daniela Torres, Claudia Bustamante and Gabriel Orrego. Special thanks to Re:wild. https://lnkd.in/eqmCcm5g #fungifoundation #fungi #lostspecies #funga #mycology #naturedocumentary #thinkfungi

We got another chance to talk with wild foods expert Hank Shaw (https://honest-food.net/) - this time about the best ways to deliciously and thoughtfully combine fresh-caught fish and your foraged or home-grown fungi. Check out the interview below. Main image by Holly A. Heyser.

We recently visited Kerry Hanney who owns and runs Night Moves Bread in South Portland to explore a potential collaboration between Night Moves and North Spore using their excess wheat bran from the milling process in our shiitake block production. Kerry's locally sourced whole grains are milled onsite, creating surplus bran ideal for substrate material. Our experimentation with incorporating this bran into shiitake blocks offers potential for a shift from the current Midwest-sourced ingredients to locally-produced ones. If successful, this collaboration could serve as a model for similar partnerships, fostering a more localized and sustainable food ecosystem 💪 ♻

Earth Day for us is a reminder to get curious about the ways we can use mushrooms to make the world a better place. If you haven't yet, please take some time to check out our video about mycoremediation - bioremediation using fungi. Bre of North Spore was inspired to experiment growing mushrooms on alternative substrates to explore questions about how fungi can potentially help with pollution. She also had a chance to speak with mycoremediation expert Lauren Czaplicki, PhD, who has used fungi to remediate contaminated soils, and Sue Van Hook, a mycologist who has invented the world's first mushroom buoy in efforts to reduce plastic waste in our oceans. Let us know what you think 🌍 Happy Earth Day from North Spore!