Webinars
NAMA Webinars
Sign Up for Upcoming Webinars or Watch Past Recordings
Upcoming Events
Insect Agriculture: A Look into the Nest of Fungus Growing Ants
by Beth Llana’s Webinar |
April 30rd | 7 PM Central
Past Recordings (click to view)
Online Mapping Tools for Mushroom Hunting
Online mapping tools and apps like GeoForager, iNaturalist, Gaia, OnX, etc. are incredible resources for mushroom hunting. Navigating the woods or documenting your finds is only the beginning of their usefulness. Explore how mycologists and mushroom hunters gain insights into the habitats, seasonality, range and availability of species like morel, matsutake and porcini. We will reference dozens of online tools focus on a few of the best
By Trent Blizzard
Culinary Committee: Panel Discussion for Similkameen Foray & Feast
by the Culinary Committee
As we get ready to head into the Similkameen Valley this June for the 2026 Similkameen Valley Foray & Feast, I am incredibly excited to announce our Culinary Expert Panel Webinar happening March 30th.
While our days will be spent deep in the post-burn landscapes of Manning Park, our evenings will shift to the kitchen and the dining room. We’ve brought together a “dream team” of culinary talent to the unique gastronomy of the morel. Including: Chad Hyatt, Jennifer Levine, Robert Courteau and Julie Schreiber.
This panel is designed to be interactive, so bring your toughest culinary questions! Whether you are a home cook or a professional chef, you’ll walk away with new skills to match your harvest.
Ecology, Evolution, and Management of Invasive Golden Oyster Mushrooms
by Aishwarya Veerabahu | hosted by Alisha Millican
We now know that golden oysters are impacting native fungal communities. The next question, that has had many of us guessing, is: whyare these mushrooms so invasive and how do we go about managing them as a community?
Bioluminescence and UV Fluorescence in Fungi of California
by Damon Tighe | Hosted by Alisha Millican
A visual tour of all that glows in California. One need not go to the tropics for Bioluminescence as it happens all over North America and fungi are some of the main terrestrial culprits. Why they glow is still a bit of an open question. In contrast UV Fluorescence is wide spread in fungi and is an emerging tool for seeing mushrooms in a new light. It can be very helpful in identifying certain taxonomic groups and make night hikes very rewarding.
Edible Mycorrhizal Fungi of the Northeast: Species Identification, Ecology, and Foraging Strategies
by Annabelle Langlois’| Hosted by Ken Buegeleisen
Learn to read the landscape and forecast what mushrooms you’ll find before you even start searching. This lecture explores some of the most common ectomycorrhizal edibles in Northeastern forests—including boletes, chanterelles, hedgehogs, russulas, and milkcaps—along with their dangerous lookalikes. We’ll cover identification features, seasonal timing, habitat preferences, and how to predict fruiting based on weather patterns and forest composition.
When Plants Make Mushrooms: Exobasidium fungi of North America
Exobasidium is a group of fungi that has perplexed mycologists for decades. These fungi, closely related to smuts, are plant pathogens that infect hosts in the order Ericales (Heaths and Allies). Host plants in this include important crop and ornamental species, such as blueberries, tea, and azaleas, but also various native plants. Depending on the species of Exobasidium, these fungi can cause a wide variety of symptoms on the host plant, ranging from large galls to small leaf spots, effectively causing the plant to make a mushroom for them. This talk will give an overview of this group of fungi, provide a history of our understanding, and display the known species of Exobasidium so you can ID them on your future hikes and forays.by Benton Willis | Hosted by Ken Buegeleisen
Wind, Wings, And Waste: How Fungi Get Around
Fungi are everywhere – from the frozen tundra to the depths of the ocean, from your backyard to the forgotten container in your fridge. How do these seemingly inanimate organisms find and flourish in all these nooks and crannies? In this talk, we’ll explore multiple strategies fungi, and other fungus-like organisms, use to move through – and sometimes manipulate – their environment. We’ll discuss some of the weird and unconventional methods they use to ensure their continued success.
by Amy Honan | Hosted by Robert Courteau
Shared Purpose on Sacred Land: The Mushroom People of the Oaxacan Mountains
Presented by the organizers of NAMAMX: Zachary, Ireri and Kim. Learn about the history of the people of the Oaxacan Mountains and their deep relationship with mushrooms. We will discuss NAMA’s past and future forays in this region, including the upcoming NAMAMX_26.
Community Science in Mycology – Documenting Fungal Diversity Through
Collaboration
This presentation explores why much of the world’s fungal diversity remains undocumented and how community science can help address that gap. Through examples from recent fieldwork and collaborative projects, we’ll look at what these efforts are uncovering and how they can inform the next steps in biodiversity research.
by Graham Steinruck – February 19th | 7PM Central
DNA to Z: Adventures from the front lines of biodiversity discovery.
NAMA has always dedicated substantial resources to mycology research with DNA barcoding being the most recent edition to our tool kit. Explore how traditional specimen vouchering and DNA barcoding efforts work side-by-side in the quest to document and understand North America’s rich fungal diversity. We will discuss what DNA barcoding is, how we do it, and what we can learn from it. Finally, we will take a journey through some of the exciting discoveries that we have made at NAMA forays.
by Harte Singer – February 17th | 7PM Central
Culinary Committee Webinar
See how three myco-chefs honor Valentine’s Day with recipes featuring polypores, oysters, shiitakes, and morels! Raise a glass with Carolyn Dugas’s “spritz” made with Ischnoderma resinosum. Celebrate with two main dishes: Chef Spike Mikulski’s creative play on oysters (two ways) and Gary Gilbert’s Sicily-inspired eggplant creations. Stay for dessert with Julie Schreiber’s cream puff trifecta! Hosted by Jon Applefield – February 10th | 7PM Central
From Spore to Spectrum: Mushrooms as Natural Colorants
Mushrooms offer a vibrant world of natural pigments waiting to be uncovered and transformed into dyes, inks, and paints. Join artist and author Julie Beeler for a visually rich presentation exploring how mushroom pigments are studied, extracted, and creatively used—and roll up your sleeves to swatch these colors yourself, experiencing the magic of fungi in full color.
By Julie Beeler | February 11th | 7PM Central
The History of Mycology, The mushrooms we love and the people who cared about them
Look into the past at the first people interested in mushrooms, the birth of taxonomy and the early botanists leading up to today’s technology for classifying fungal organisms. It’s a fun talk for mycophiles of all experience levels, bridging the past with the present and including many of our current day beloved mushrooms.
By Aaron Hilliard | January 29th, 2026 | 7PM Central
How to Recognize and Conserve Rare Fungi in Your State/Province
By Rick Van de Poll | Monday January 26th
Dr. Rick Van de Poll will review some of the history of protecting rare fungi in the United States, as well as the more recent efforts to identify and protect rare fungi through IUCN Red-Listing, the FUNDIS Rare Fungi Challenges and selected state listing projects. He will highlight a few case studies where certain species have already made a difference in fungal awareness and the promotion of protecting fungal habitats.
Entheogenic Mycolotry and Ethnomycology of Mesoamerica: Once Upon a Mushroom
By Greg Sanchez | Wednesday January 14th, 2026
As a subfield of Ethnobotany or Ethnobiology, Ethnomycology focuses on the roles and relationships of fungi within the human experience. Mesoamerican cultures and their association with sacred mushrooms from the genus Psilocybe are both fascinating as well as mysterious, and hold an essential role in the evolution of Ethnomycology. Our current psychedelic renaissance owes a huge debt to ancient sacred practices held by numerous indigenous groups around the world. This talk will focus on indigenous Mesoamerican spiritual and cultural uses of entheogenic mushrooms, many from the genus Psilocybe. Much of my emphasis will explore past research done by R. Gordon and Valentina Wasson and other pioneers in Ethnomycology. We will also examine the importance of Maria Sabina and her sacred mushroom ceremony (Velada).
Club Relations Committee: Intro to Club Insurance
The Club Relations Committee and Julie Bernhard, Webinar Manager for Blue Avocado (an online magazine that is sponsored by the Non-profit Insurance Alliance) discuss demystifying insurance for your club. They attempt to cut through the jargon and offer clear, actionable guidance, discussing the insurance buying process, types of policies, roles and responsibilities, and whether there are ways to reduce your premium costs
Cordyceps of North America by Richard Tehan
In this presentation Richard Tehan discusses the insect-pathogenic fungi and related taxa broadly known as Cordyceps. This includes the formal genus Cordyceps as well as many other genera occurring in four families in the order Hypocreales. Emphasis will be on taxa occurring in North America and will focus on classification, identification, biology, chemistry, and ongoing Cordyceps research.
Volunteer Best Practices Roundtable
Tuesday, June 17, 2025
join us for an online roundtable discussion, where we’ll present key findings from the survey, highlight successful strategies, and create space for club leaders to exchange ideas, ask questions, and learn from each other. This session is designed to help clubs improve how they recruit, engage, and retain volunteers—whether you’re just getting started or looking to refine an existing program. We hope you’ll join us to connect with fellow leaders and walk away with fresh ideas and useful insights.
What we learned from the Montana Morel Poisonings in 2023: Are morels really safe to eat?
Tuesday, April 29th, 2025 @ 7PM Central
Dr. Cathy L. Cripps will walk us through a 2023 incidents related to eating morel mushrooms, and talk about details of what happened, what we learned, and how it might apply to your own consumption of morels.
Functional mushrooms supplementation as a prebiotic fibre impacting the microbiome composition
Thursday April 17th, 2025
Dr. Julie Daoust will cover recent research on functional mushrooms and their impact on gut health as well as the research she led on the unique prebiotic effect of multiple mushroom species on markers of gut health including microbiome composition, the gut metabolome and the health of the gut lining.
Tuesday April 8th, 2025 @ 7PM Central
Discover the latest digital tools and technologies that enhance the study of mushrooms. This talk explores how phone apps, websites, software and specialized electronics can improve field mycology. Learn how apps like iNaturalist, GPS mapping tools, Merlin, Perplexity, Waze, and Cellmapper assist with identification, navigation, and data collection.
Wednesday April 2nd, 2025 @ 7PM Central
Join us to learn about Spring edible mushrooms. Morel recipes, morel miso, Mexican spring mushrooms and the upcoming Chopped Challenge are all on the agenda.
Tuesday, March 18th 2025 @ 7PM Central
Join us on a journey through history, as we take a look at the lives and often overlooked contributions of the women who came before us.
Connections: How mycorrhizal fungi weave together and protect our forests
Thursday March 13th, 2025 @ 7PM
Dr. EC Cline explores some of the research that shows how mycorrhizal fungi help trees grow and build connected communities.
Tuesday, March 4th, 2025 @ 7PM Central
Dr. David Hibbett presents on genera of “lentinoid” fungi and how we came to recognize that they are different.
Sorting Out Russula
Thursday, February 27th 2025 @ 7PM Central
It is easy to dismiss any red, fragile mushroom as “one of the red Russula”, but can we do better? There are a few features that can help us to get closer to understanding this genus. By Tavis Lynch
Tuesday, February 25th 2025
Join lorchel expert Dr. Alden Dirks for an overview of our latest findings informed by widespread fungarium sequencing, in-depth taxonomic revisions, and cutting-edge phylogenomic analyses.
Mushrooms and Social Media: Leveraging Social Platforms for Mycology Club Success
with Luke Smithson, NAMA Membership Manager, Melissa Klotka, Adam Cohen and others.
Tuesday, February 18th, 2025
Join us for an engaging discussion tailored for mycology clubs looking to harness the power of social media! This session will cover essential strategies for promoting your club, engaging current members, and attracting new enthusiasts. We’ll explore how to use social media effectively for communication and recruitment, while also diving into tips for measuring your success and avoiding common pitfalls.
DNA: The Secret History of Mushrooms by Danny Miller
Thursday, February 20th, 2025
What are the biggest surprises that recent studies in DNA have shown us about the (until now) secret history of mushrooms on the planet?
The Mushroom People of the Oaxacan Mountains
Thursday February 13th, 2025 @ 7PM Central
Join Zachary Hunter as he walks through both the incredibly diverse ecosystems of Oaxaca, and reflects on his time there, and why bringing NAMA to Oaxaca is the next step for North American mycology
Stalked Puffballs and Other Desert Fungi
Tuesday February 11, 2025 @ 7PM Central
In this webinar Dr Amy Honan explores the fungal diversity of desert ecosystems. The focus will be on the diversity, evolution and ecology of the stalked puffball Tulostoma.
Mycena and allied genera – how to know the Mycenoid fungi
Tuesday, January 28th, 2025 @ 7PM Central
Brian Perry focuses on the amazing diversity of the mushroom genus Mycena and allied genera found in North America (collectively referred to as the Mycenoid fung). We’ll delve into both macro- and micromorphological features that define these genera, how to go about collecting and identifying Mycenoid fungi, and discuss our current understanding of the phylogenetic relationships of these taxa based upon molecular DNA sequence analyses.
Dr. Michael Beug explores psychotropic fungi and general medicinal/culinary fungi.
How Fungi Can Inspire Rethinking Conservation & Stewardship
Thursday, January 16th, 2025 @ 7PM Central
Aaron will discuss conservation mycology: how does stewardship play a role in it? How can fungi help us rethink how we do conservation? How can members and organizations affiliated with NAMA contribute to fungal conservation and stewardship?
Parasol Mushrooms
Tuesday, January 14th 2025 @ 7PM Central
Else Vellinga’s webinar will focus on a beautiful group of mushrooms, the Parasol mushrooms. We’ll delve into the history of Lepiota, the various ways this group has been split up and its family affiliations, where to find them, and of course, how to recognize them, and what to expect in the near future.
Aquatic Mushrooms
Thursday, December 19th , 2024 @ 7PM Central
Syrena Whitner present the evolutionary history of marine fungi, their adaptations as extremophiles in inhospitable environments, their intricate relationship with coral health, and their surprising abilities to aid in the decomposition of marine plastics.
Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest by Dr. Michael Beug
Tuesday December 17th, 2024
Dr Michael Beug focuses on his favorite charismatic fungi of the Pacific Northwest, including edible mushrooms, medicinal mushrooms and dye fungi.
Understanding and Highlighting Mushroom Aromas
Monday, December 16th, 2024
Join the NAMA Culinary Arts Committee to learn about mushroom aromas and let them influence how you cook with them! Learn about the mushroom Aroma Wheel and see it in action through 4 unique recipes featuring specific mushrooms to highlight their characteristic aroma
Why do we make collections? The science of studying mushrooms
Thursday, December 12th, 2024 @ 7PM Central
Dr. Andrew Wilson PhD describes the value of natural history collections, as well as explain the process and progress of NAMA’s Voucher Collections Project.
Summer Mushrooms: Culinary Arts Webinar
Monday, June 3, 2024
Robert Courteau hosts Zachary Hunter, Spike Mikulski, Wade Fox, Jess Starwood and Gordon Walker are the featured of this NAMA Culinary Arts Webinar and demo, which focuses on summer-season foraging..
Foraging in the Arizona Mountains: Why the Mogollon Rim is Special
Sunday, May 21st, 2024
by Arizona Mycological Society
Cultivation, Identification and Quality Control of Functional Mushroom Products
Wednesday, May 8, 2024
Jeff Chilton discusses the proliferation of mushroom products and the proper labeling as required by the FDA and FTC. Good Manufacturing Processes and Specific marker compounds will also be discussed.
Understanding Burn Morels: Learn Where, When and Why They Grow (Video)
Sunday, May 5th, 2024
Trent Blizzard leads an in-depth presentation about Burn Morels, especially as they appear in the Western half of the lower 48 states of the USA.
Using Phylogeneomics to Resolve the Evolutionary Radiation of Boletaceae (Video)
Monday, April 29th, 2024
Bryn Dentinger updates us on the recent work applying genomic-level data and globally representative taxon sampling to resolve the frustratingly recalcitrant backbone relationships among the genera Boletaceae
Tryptamine Fungi of North America & New Discoveries in the Taxonomy of Psilocybin Mushrooms (Video)
Tuesday, April 23, 2024
Alan Rockefeller leads an in depth discussion of the psilocybin and tryptamine containing fungi of North America. Includes three recently discovered Psilocybe species and quality photos of the known species occurring in Canada, USA and Mexico.
How to Start and Grow A Mushroom Club (Video)
Tuesday, April 16th, 2024
A moderated discussion with a panel of organizers who have experience with starting a volunteer based mushroom club.
Boletes and Boletales of Arizona by Christopher May (Video)
Monday, April 8, 2024
See a presentation about the Boletes of Arizona which will show these interesting organisms in all their variety, followed by Q&A
Spring Culinary Talk & Demo by the Culinary Arts Committee (video)
Monday April 1st, 2024
Live cooking demo with Jess, Gordon, Wade and Spike – morels, shio koji, discussion about the Chopped-style challenge and more! Followed by a Q&A.
The Egos, The Ecology and The Economics of Truffle Culture (video)
Wednesday, March 6th, 2024
Stephanie Jarvis guides us on a journey to learn about the ecological roles of truffles in North America, the Egos involved in truffle culture (broadly) and the Economics of truffle cultivation and the truffle world overall.
Los Hongos en Mexico – NAMA Mexico Foray Recap with MMS (video)
Monday, February 12, 2024 (7:00 PM – 9:00 PM)
Foray Recap with Ron Spinosa, Aaron Berg and Heather Erickson Presented by the Minnesota Mycological Society
Lessons from Mexico: Humanity, Ecology and Mushrooms (video)
Tuesday, February 20, 2024 (7:00 PM – 9:00 PM)
A webinar presented by Zachary Hunter from Oaxaca, Mexico. Learn about the fascinating culture of mushrooms and mycology in Mexico.
Autumn Culinary Arts Panel and Demo (video)
Autumn, 2023
Join NAMA Culinary Arts Committee resident chefs Spike Mikulski, Robert Courteau, Jess Starwood and Gordon Walker as they share their favorite recipes, tips on foraging for edible mushrooms and answer your questions! Chef Spike Milulski will share a new video presentation on foraging and cooking and you will also be welcome to contribute your own experience and thoughts to this casual open-forum meet-and-greet.
Foraging & Cooking with Amanita Species (video)
Hosted by Robert Courteau with Spike Mikulski, Jess Starwood and Stu Pickell
Thursday, April 27
Which Chanterelle is that? Interpreting the latest North American research (video)
by Rachel Swenie on 2/8/23
The Next Big Thing In Mycology (2023 Edition) (video)
DNA Sequencing by Stephen Russell on 1/24/23
“Magic” Mushrooms and Psilocybin:from Mesoamerican Prehistory to Current Clinical Trials (video)
by Dr C. Kenneth Kassenbrock, MD, PHD on 12/13/22
Mycology for Educators (video)
by Eva Gordon on 10/26/222
Cooking with the NAMA Culinary Arts Committee, featuring Spike Mikulski (video)
by Spike Mikulski and Robert Courteau 8/18/22
iNaturalist 101: Navigating iNaturalist for Forays and Mushroom Clubs (video)
by Ariel Bonkoski 6/7/22
Armchair Discussion on the Underground Network (SPUN) (video)
by Robert Corteau of Think Fungi and Dr Toby Kiers of SPUN 5/24/22
The State of State Mushrooms (video)
by Rose Tursi 5/17
The Registry of Mushrooms in Works of Art
by Elio Schaecter, Ph.D. 4/6/22
Waxy Caps: Beauty, Mystery and Discovery within Hygrophoraceae
By Lauren Re on 3/2/22
Fungal Diversity Survey Championing Fungal Conservation, Together
by Bill Sheehan and Sigrid Jacobson on 4/22/21
Taming the Wild Morel
by Michael Scott Zirpoli on 3/24/21
Specimens and Stories in the Mycological Collection, Iowa State University’s Ada Hayden Herbarium
by Deborah Lewis on 2/25/21
Learning About Boletes and the Online Bolete Filter Tool
by Scott Pavelle on 1/18/21
Using Mold in the Kitchen – Koji Culture
by Jeremy Umansky. 11/9/20
Women in Mycology
by Giuliana Furci on 10/17/2020
Mushroom Identification Session
by Sam Landes on 10/17/20
Mushrooms of the Missouri Ozarks
by Andrew S. Methven, PH.D. on 10/17/20
Cooking Demonstration
by Chef Chad Hyatt on 10/17/20
Amanitas of Eastern North America
by Jay Justice on 10/17
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