Hedgehog Mushroom

This is one of the superior edible mushrooms of the late summer and fall, the hedgehog mushroom, Hydnum species. They are mycorrhizal, so they form a symbiotic relationship with trees, and have a very distinctive underside that is covered with tiny spines rather than gills or pores like most cap and stem mushrooms.

This specimen was found on the Blue Square Trail at the Long Ridge Conservation Area, Sullivan, Missouri. This image is part of the article Trailheads: Portals to the Fungal Dimension.