Craterellus mushroom species

The Craterellus mushrooms are edible mushrooms. Genetically similar to the Cantharellus these mushrooms differentiate themselves by their caps, which lack gill-like structures on their undersides. Craterellus has three different species: cornucopioides, tubaeformis and lutescens.

The Craterellus cornucopioides is commonly known as black trumpet, black chanterelle or the trumpet of death. The name derives from the Greek ‘Cornucopia’, a horn of plenty which was known to refill itself with goodies any time the master of the horn commanded. It has a dark color and doesn’t seem very attractive but its flavor makes up for what it lacks in appearance. Mushroom hunting is rather difficult because the black trumpets are hard to distinguish from dead leaves on the ground.

Craterellus tubaeformis is another edible mushroom species. It has a yellow color, which earns it the name of Yellow Foot. It is also known as the Funnel Chanterelle, because of its trumpet shape and as the winter mushroom due to the large numbers in which it can be found late in the mushroom season.

C. tubaeformis has a convex cap with widely separated gills. It is a saprotrophic fungus that can be found on moss, rotten woods and lives in symbiosis with other plants, which can make it hard to cultivate, but its great taste makes it worth the trouble. It has a peppery taste, almost smoky when raw and has a very good flavor when fried or put in soups.

Craterellus lutescens also has the name Yellow Foot, due to its close relationship to tubaeformis. It does however have a brighter color than the latter. Its cap has an irregular shape and is rather lobed. Its hymenium is smooth and has a pinkish color. The C. lutescens lives mostly in wetlands or in humid conditions. Growing in colonies, it can be found in coniferous forests, under spruce or different types of trees.