[jeffheard]

This is absolutely correct. Neither chanterelles nor puffballs are "foolproof" mushrooms, even slightly. Mistaken puffballs are probably the number one cause of serious mushroom poisonings and even fatalities, since small puffballs look so much like amanita mushrooms that haven't fully opened yet.

And chanterelles have a number of at least moderately toxic lookalikes depending on the region you're in and how much an eager amateur is willing to stretch the definition. I don't think a lot of beginners can reliably tell the difference between "gills" and "folds."

Plus what you referred to about toxins leached from the tree that the mushroom was growing on. I'd not eat anything growing on a locust tree or a fallen rhododendron. Just seems like inviting trouble.

[vidarh]

I think the "depending on the region you're in" part is what struck me most as lacking about this article.

It's also imprecise in giving advice on precise growing conditions. E.g telling a beginner that no matter what they think, a given mushroom doesn't grow in summer is a good way of reducing misidentification.

[Alex3917]

> I don't think a lot of beginners can reliably tell the difference between "gills" and "folds."

Can anyone? The way you know it's a chanterelle is if it smells like apricots. The gill vs fold thing is kind of a red herring.

[dentalperson]

Yes, once you have felt and identified a chanterelle with success a few times, it's very easy for an experienced forager to tell the difference between gills and folds (especially in the larger species such as C. californicus). The folds are often veiny and cannot be moved or 'plucked' like gills. In general though, identification should be done using as many factors as possible (e.g. using a identification key which is like a decision tree). For example, besides gills and smell, another way to differentiate the (non- or only mildly-toxic) false chanterelle is the firmness.