Eastern Jack-o’-Lantern vs Golden Chanterelle
Omphalotus illudens and Cantharellus cibarius are confused for one another often enough to be worth putting next to each other.
Grows in dense orange clumps at the foot of hardwoods in eastern North America and glows faintly green once your eyes adjust. Not deadly, but a memorable night for anyone who took it for a chanterelle.
One of the great wild edibles. Egg-yellow, apricot-scented, with blunt false gills running down the stem.
Side by side
| Omphalotus illudens | Cantharellus cibarius | |
|---|---|---|
| In this game | Poisonous | Edible |
| Habitat | Not recorded yet | Mossy broadleaf and conifer woodland on acid soil, mycorrhizal with beech, oak, birch and pine. |
| Season | Not recorded yet | Summer to autumn. |
| Spore print | Not recorded yet | Pale yellow. |
This comparison cannot make a mushroom safe to eat. It sets out the few characteristics this game records, in general terms, for two species that vary by region, age and growing conditions. Real specimens overlap in ways no table and no photograph can separate, and the deadly one here is deadly in a single meal. Ask a qualified local expert, every time.
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Cantharellus cibarius is also confused with Deadly Webcap, Jack-o'-Lantern, False Chanterelle, Pale Chanterelle, Yellowfoot and Hedgehog Mushroom.
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