MAW's August monthly meeting will feature a presentation by Keith Seifert discussing the ongoing reorganization of how we think and talk about the relationship of the members of the fungi kingdom in "DON'T PANIC - Putting the Fun Back in Fungal Names."
Keith is the author of The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi: Exploring the Microscopic World in Our Forests, Homes, and Bodies (see recent review in the Washington Post). In his book, Keith emphasizes the pervasiveness of the microscopic fungi and their importance to life on our planet and humans in particular. Over his 40-year career as a mycologist specializing in the taxonomy of microscopic fungi, Keith has done significant work using fungal DNA barcoding to study communities of microorganisms, including fungi, found in natural samples (“environmental metagenomics”).
Keith has been the president of the International Mycological Association, executive editor of the journal of the Mycological Society of America, Mycologia, and recently retired from his position retired from his position at Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada, and is now an adjunct professor at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada.
In addition to announcements, and mushrooms in the news by Elizabeth Hargrave, and the virtual ID table by Mitch Fournet, our meeting will include an audience participation quiz to test our member’s identification skills on common mushrooms that you are likely to be finding on your walks now, with a particular focus on chanterelles.
John Harper will talk briefly about the opening of a new Park Research Forum on MAW's website, inviting members to help information about local parks and other areas for mushroom forays, including researching rules that might restrict mushroom gathering.
We're virtual again this month via Zoom. Here are the login credentials, including passcode should you need it.
Zoom Link:
https://zoom.us/j/96693690911?pwd=YWdyeXh1bHF1N1UyNjNieFovNWFUZz09
Meeting ID 966 9369 0911 Passcode 330827
One Tap Mobile: +13017158592,,96693690911#,,,,*330827# US (Washington DC)
Find your local number: https://us06web.zoom.us/u/kQ9hr47WO
