Chanterelle or Jack-o'-lantern
Cantharellus species · Omphalotus illudens / olearius
Illudin S
Violent vomiting, diarrhoea and cramps beginning within a few hours. Rarely fatal, but people are hospitalised for dehydration every year, and it is one of the most common poisonings in both North America and Europe.
Check in this order
Most decisive first
| Feature | Chanterelle | Jack-o'-lantern |
|---|---|---|
| 01Underside | False gills: blunt, forking ridges that run down the stem and look like folds in the flesh. You cannot cleanly pick one off. | True gills: thin, sharp, blade-like, unforked, and separable from the flesh. |
| 02Where it grows | From soil, singly or scattered. Chanterelles are mycorrhizal and grow with trees, never out of dead wood. | In dense clusters at the base of stumps, buried roots or dead hardwood. |
| 03Flesh colour inside | White or pale, the same right through. | Orange throughout, matching the outside. |
| 04In the dark | Nothing. | Fresh gills may glow faintly green. Absence of glow proves nothing; presence is conclusive. |
Where people go wrong
Colour. Both are orange, and colour is the feature people anchor on. The underside settles it in two seconds and is almost never checked.
The specimen sheets
This page tells you what to check. It does not tell you the mushroom in your hand is safe, and it cannot. If you are not certain, do not eat it, and if you have already eaten something and feel unwell, contact a poison centre immediately and keep an uncooked specimen for identification.
Other pairs