It's been the 'mushroom season of the century' in northern B.C.

Summer 2019 may have been the "mushroom season of the century" in northern B.C., according to a local expert.

Hugues Massicotte is a mycologist with the University of Northern British Columbia in Prince George, and he says the variety and volume of fungi growing around the city exceeds anything he's seen in 25 years of research in the community.

"I think it's been an extraordinary year, a peak year," Massicotte said. "This might have been the mushroom season of the century." 

Mushrooms prefer cool, moist and humid growing environments.

Prince George experienced regular rainfall in August, not far off historic levels.

And the average daily temperature of 14.3 C was only slightly cooler that the historic 15 C.

Plenty of people exploring the woods around Prince George have observed an increase in the number of mushrooms in bloom.

"It is certainly the best [mushroom year] that I have seen in 41 years of wandering around the mountains and back country of North Central B.C.," said Mike Nash, an outdoor survival expert and writer.

Massicotte said he's been receiving multiple emails from people asking him to identify unusual mushrooms they've spotted growing in the woods, or even their own backyards.

He estimates there are up to 1,000 different species of mushrooms in the Prince George area, many undocumented, so he plans to test several samples in his lab this autumn in the hopes of making a new discovery.

"Many [mushrooms] have medicinal properties," he said. "First Nations discovered that a long time ago... but at the university we're trying to do more biochemistry."

To hear more from a 'fungi field trip' led by Massicotte, click on the play button.

Fungi photographs from CBC listeners

CBC Daybreak North asked listeners for their photos of mushrooms and other fungi seen over the summer.

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