Rare coral hedgehog mushroom found in Moscow region, leave it alone
A coral hedgehog turned up in the Moscow region, but foragers were told to leave it in the forest. The red-listed Hericium coralloides is protected and rare.
Hericium coralloides, a coral hedgehog mushroom found in the Moscow region, should stay in the forest, not in a forager’s basket.
On June 18, the Ministry of Ecology and Nature Management of the Moscow Region urged mushroom pickers to use the official field guide so edible, poisonous and protected fungi would not be confused. The region has 27 Red Book mushroom species, and illegal collection can lead to administrative liability.
Hericium coralloides sits in the Moscow Region Red Book as category 3, a rare species with low numbers and a narrow ecological preference. It also appears on Moscow’s protected-species list. The Moscow Red Book of Endangered Species protects rare flora and fauna and sets out measures for their recovery, and the current Moscow city Red Book, first published in 2001 and updated in 2010 and 2022, covers 573 species of animals, plants and fungi.
It grows on dead deciduous wood and has been documented fruiting from July to October on birch, aspen and alder in northwestern Russia. Earlier scientific work recorded it as a rare fungus in the Tver region, and searches for rare fungi should pay attention to the type of biocenosis, the habitat community that supports them.
The coral hedgehog appeared after heavy rains and a drop in nighttime temperatures and is category 5, meaning its population is recovering. The Moscow Region Red Book entry classifies Hericium coralloides as category 3.
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