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The Puget Sound Mycological Society is an ALL volunteer non-profit organization. PSMS does not have ANY employees.
PSMS Inclusivity Statement
For over fifty years, the Puget Sound Mycological Society (PSMS) has nurtured collaboration amongst its members for an understanding and appreciation of the wide diversity of mushroom species in the Pacific Northwest. We also depend on a diverse membership to support our mission to foster the understanding and appreciation of mycology as a hobby and a science. In recent months, as systematic inequality in U.S. society is revealed to a broader audience, it becomes clearer that inequality imposes barriers on marginalized groups to participation in a wide variety of activities. PSMS opposes all barriers that limit participation in mycology. PSMS and its board members support a more diverse, inclusive, and welcoming organization where all people, especially those who are underrepresented in our organization and society at large, can enjoy mushrooms and all of the activities associated with them. We realize this will be an on-going conversation and are looking to our members for suggestions on ways to increase diversity, inclusivity, and welcoming. Thank you as we join together to make this long-overdue journey toward systemic equality!
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If You Suspect
a Poisoning
Contact a physician or Washington Poison Center: 1-800-222-1222
More Poison InformationSpore Prints Newsletter
Spore Prints is the monthly newsletter of PSMS containing announcements of coming events and speakers, plus a variety of tidbits, trivia, recipes, and research developments.
Spore Prints Archive
Harvesting Rules
Washington state is divided into numerous federal, state, local and Native American jurisdictions. Learn the proper rules for each jurisdiction.
Harvesting Information
Upcoming Events
Tuesday Feb. 10th, 2026 - 7:30pm
Monthly Meeting
Brian Perry - Lighting Up the Fungal Kingdom: Bioluminescence, Biodiversity, and Discovery
The Puget Sound Mycological Society is pleased to welcome Brian A. Perry, Ph.D. as our February Speaker of the Month at the Center for Urban Horticulture. Dr. Perry is a mycologist whose work bridges field biology, fungal systematics, and modern biochemical and genetic research-an approach well suited to this month's exploration of one of the most captivating phenomena in mycology: fungal bioluminescence.
Fungal bioluminescence has intrigued observers since antiquity, first noted by Aristotle more than two thousand years ago. Yet only recently have scientists begun to unravel the chemical pathways and genetic machinery that allow certain fungi to glow. More than 125 species are now known to produce luminescent mushrooms or mycelium, and new discoveries continue to emerge from forests, herbaria, and molecular laboratories alike.
Dr. Perry is Professor of Biology at California State University, East Bay, Director of the HAY Fungarium, and Associate Director of the Green Biome Institute. His research integrates field collecting, microscopy, fungarium-based study, and DNA analysis to better understand fungal diversity, evolution, and ecological function. This combination of perspectives is central to how we come to recognize and study phenomena like bioluminescence-linking glowing fruitbodies in the woods to preserved specimens, named species, and the underlying genes that make light possible.
For PSMS members, Dr. Perry's work highlights the enduring importance of careful observation and well-documented collections. Many luminescent species are poorly known, rarely collected, or recognized only when someone takes the time to notice a faint green glow on a forest walk. Fungaria provide the long-term home for these discoveries, preserving specimens that allow researchers to confirm identifications, reconstruct evolutionary histories, and test new biochemical questions decades later.
We are excited to welcome Brian Perry to the Center for Urban Horticulture and to offer PSMS members an evening that celebrates both the wonder of glowing fungi and the scientific pathways that allow us to understand them-from the forest floor to the fungarium, and now, down to the molecular level.
Brian's talk is open to all, and we welcome the general public to attend this exciting event. This event will not be broadcast live VIA Zoom, however we will endevor to record the presentation and make it available to PSMS members for 30 days following the presentation.