McIlvainea, Volume 21

For the lead article in 2012, I have joined Tom Bruns in calling for Working Toward a North American Mycoflora. As you will read in the article, we are repeating the 2009 call of Brandon Matheny and Else Vellinga to get the ball rolling. The task is challenging, but we believe that it is a worthy goal for NAMA to assist with. The annual report of the NAMA toxicology committee describing the poisoning incidents reported in 2011 is packed with information and insights. Bill Bakaitis reports on both the identification and toxicology of Boletus huronensis. I have written as short Shiitake dermatitis alert and a short article on polyporic acid in fungi. The polyporic acid article was an outgrowth of finding and trying to identify a soft-fleshed polypore on a downed Douglas fir near my home. The fungus, which I have nick-named the Rainbow Sherbert polypore, is featured on the front cover. I mailed the specimen to Jim Ginns in Canada and he has identified my mystery fungus as Leptoporus mollis.

We have added the Voucher Committee reports for the 2009 NAMA foray at Lafayette, Louisiana, hosted by the Gulf States Mycological Society, the 2010 NAMA foray at Winter Park, Colorado, hosted by the Colorado Mycological Society and the 2011 NAMA foray at Clarion, Pennsylvania, hosted by the Western Pennsylvania Mushroom Club.

McIlvainea accepts articles throughout the year. If you have an idea for a paper or are willing to review articles submitted for publication, I would love to hear from you. Instructions for authors can be found on the NAMA website, www.namyco.org. Submissions are reviewed. Once accepted, articles are promptly published online.

Sincerely, Michael W. Beug

Send manuscripts to Michael W. Beug, PhD, PO Box 116, Husum, WA 98623; or by email to beugm [at] evergreen.edu.