Formed in 1997, the SDMS began as a fun way for local mushroom enthusiasts to get together, and grew into a non-profit that educates and disseminates scientific information about mushrooms to the community.
Monthly meetings feature scientists and special guests with expertise in all areas of mycology, from cooking/growing to photography, and from arts/crafts to gardening and conservation biology. Together, members go on forays throughout San Diego county to learn about and collect mushrooms. Each February, SDMS hosts a day-long “Fungus Fair” event in Balboa Park, to introduce the public to all the amazing aspects of Kingdom Fungi.
In the past few years, SDMS members have initiated a local citizen science project that has been building up the collection of scientific mushroom specimens and data at the SD Herbarium in the Natural History Museum (theNAT). This project now features a new dimension – the collection of tissue samples to be analyzed by the exciting new science of DNA barcoding. Visit www.sdmyco.org to learn more about the SDMS and this innovative citizen science project in San Diego County!