Across the world, fungi are finally getting the attention they deserve.
From seasoned mycologists (people who study mushrooms and other fungi) to curious naturalists and everyone in between, fungi are in the spotlight.
Mushrooms, slime molds and all their eccentric relatives have long captivated nature enthusiasts, but now hundreds of new fungal recruits are joining this fascination with a shared mission: to build the most comprehensive biodiversity survey of macrofungi ever attempted across North America. Macrofungi are those we often think about then hearing word fungi – like mushrooms with caps, puffballs or bracket fungi.
At the heart of this effort is Mycota Lab, a non-profit dedicated to advancing fungal knowledge across the continent. Through their large-scale DNA sequencing initiative, they are offering free opportunities of finding the exact order of the four chemical building blocks that make up DNA to both professional mycologists and community scientists, an unprecedented chance to illuminate the fungal diversity around us.
Creating a Canada-wide Inventory
Several Canadian provinces have already jumped into the challenge of mapping fungi in their area. In Atlantic Canada, the regional MycoMap project launched in 2024 and spanning New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island has collected over 7,652 dried specimens for sequencing. Alberta recently joined the national effort in 2026, becoming the only non-coastal province currently contributing to this Canada-wide fungal inventory.
The province stealing the spotlight, however, is British Columbia. The MycoMap BC project stands out not only because of the biodiversity in the province but for the remarkable level of community participation driving it forward. The project launched in fall of 2025, and as of the end of July 2026, more than 20,000 dried specimens have been collected and the 200+ dedicated community scientists involved show no signs of slowing down. Among the nearly 10,000 sequences processed, 10 per cent represent new records for British Columbia on iNaturalist (a community science platform where people can record and share wildlife observations). These include already-known species and collections so new they are known only by temporary code names. Such findings reveal just how much fungal diversity remains undocumented and what incredible potential lies within the remaining samples.
Growing the Network
Before MycoMap BC, significant data gaps hampered fungal research in the Pacific Northwest. Only 680 sequenced fungal collections from BC were available on iNaturalist, far fewer than Washington (9,355), Oregon (4,306) or California (19,829), despite BC having more total (sequenced and non-sequenced records) fungal iNaturalist observations than both Washington and Oregon. Limited access to sequencing had been a major barrier to understanding species distributions and regional diversity. Thanks to the Mycota Lab and the MycoMap BC project, those barriers are coming down, opening the door for community mycologists to contribute in ways that were once impossible.
The BC project’s collaboration with the University of Victoria adds yet another layer of impact. Students are gaining hands-on experience in biodiversity science: from guided mushroom walks and bioblitzes to learning to sample fungal tissue to prepare it for sequencing and analyzing DNA barcodes. And this opportunity isn’t exclusive; community volunteers are invited into the lab as well, creating a rare and meaningful space where local enthusiasm directly fuels scientific discovery.
But perhaps the most exciting part of MycoMap BC is that the story isn’t finished, not even close. Every field season, every mushroom walk, every specimen carefully dried and submitted is another piece of BC’s ecological puzzle snapping into place. And because community scientists are leading the way, anyone with a bit of curiosity and a willingness to crouch next to a log after the rain can help rewrite what we know about fungal life in the province.
Fungi are famously good at surprising us. They break rules, defy expectations and pop up in places we least expect. As the MycoMap BC database continues to grow, so does our understanding of the hidden networks that support forests, wildlife and ecosystems in Canada.
So if you’ve ever wondered what mysteries might be waiting under the next rotting stump or along your favourite trail, this is your invitation: grab a hand lens, open iNaturalist and join the hunt. Because the next big fungal discovery could be yours.
You can read more about how to participate at the MycoMap.org network page, where you can click through to a participating province.
Elora’s author bio too add: Elora is a Mycology enthusiast, naturalist and graduate student at the University of Victoria. She coordinates the MycoMap BC project.
Samuelle Simard-Provençal
Samuelle is a wildlife ecologist with a passion for science communication, and a love for all that nature has to offer. She is CWF's iNaturalist Coordinator, assisting with the development, management, and promotion of the community science app and website. Samuelle creates and delivers engaging content, events, and initiatives aimed at promoting the iNaturalist.ca platform. When not in the office, you can find Sam watching birds, exploring tidepools, or creating embroidered art of her favourite species.
