Past speakers
Recent speakers at our monthly SOMA meetings.
2024
- Scholarship Winners present their research updates
Short presentations from several scholarship recipients - Facebook Feb 15, 2024
2023
- Eugenia Bone internationally known food and nature writer.
Fantastic Fungi! Community Cookbook - Facebook Dec 21, 2023 - Dr. Gordon Walker - Fascinated By Fungi
How fungi fit into the tree of life, and live among us! - Facebook Nov 16, 2023 - Alan Rockefeller & Mandie Quark visited Finca Heimatlos, an eco resort
Equador Rainforest Foray Recap - Facebook Apr 20, 2023 - Harte Singer DNA Sequencing Lead for FunDiS
What is barcoding and Nanopore Sequencing? Community Science on iNat. - FB Mar 16, 2023 - Scholarship Winners present their research updates
Short presentations from several scholarship recipients - Facebook Feb 16, 2023
2022
- Alan Rockefeller recently interviewed in Edible East Bay
Luminescent Fungi - Facebook Dec 17, 2022 - Taye Bright, Jack Johnson, and Bob Rawson "hybrid" meeting at the Laguna de Santa Rosa Heron Hall
Mycoremediation options for the Laguna watershed and surrounding areas - Facebook Nov 17, 2022 - Camille DeGabrielle author of the Just Mushrooms cookbook
Cooking demonstration - Facebook Oct 20, 2022 - Damon Tighe from Bio-Rad Life Sciences
Algae Blooms, Genetic Sequencing, and iNaturalist - Facebook Sept 15, 2022 - Christian Schwarz author of Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast
Mushroom Bioregions of the United States - Facebook May 31, 2022 - Harte Singer from The Perry Lab
DNA Sequencing of the SOMA Camp mushroom finds - Facebook April 21, 2022 - John Grant, and Wyatt Bryson from Jewels of the Forest
Mushroom Cultivation Explained - Facebook Mar 17, 2022 - Grace Stark, Michael Bradshaw, Glade Dlott, and others
Past and Present SOMA scholarship recipients - Facebook Feb 17, 2022
2021
- Kem Luther & Andy MacKinnon authors of
Mushrooms of British Columbia
What it takes to publish a mushroom book - Facebook Nov 18, 2021 - Michael Bueg author of Mushrooms of Cascadia
Should I have eaten that mushroom? - Facebook Oct 19, 2021 - Alissa Allen founder of Mycopigments
Exploring Mycology through Dye Experimentation - Facebook Sept 16, 2021 - Gavin McIntyre Co-founder of Ecovative Design
Mycelium Biofabrication - Facebook May 20, 2021 - Daisy Hernandez from UC Davis, David M. Rizzo lab
Ganoderma diversity in California - Youtube Apr 15, 2021 - Kristine Vejar and Adrienne Rodriguez Co-founders of A Verb for Keeping Warm
Color-fast Dyes from Mushrooms - Facebook Mar 18, 2021 - Robert Blundell from UC Davis Eskalen Lab
Fungus controlling fungus - Grapevine trunk disease - Facebook Feb 18, 2021 - Langdon Cook author of The Mushroom Hunters
Wild Edibles: Patch to Plate, and stories from his books - Facebook Feb 4, 2021 - Roo Vandegrift on his documentary movie Marrow of the Mountain
Live from Ecuador - Facebook Jan 21, 2021 - Trent and Kristen Blizzard Co-founders of Modern Forager
Mushroom Preservation Techniques - Facebook Jan 7, 2021
2020
- William Padilla-Brown from MycoSymbiotics
Cordyceps Cultivation - Facebook Dec 17, 2020 - Zachary Mazi also known as The Food Bender
Mushrooms of the Lanna Kingdom - Facebook Nov 19, 2020 - Mikhael Selk Myco-Parasites
- David Hibbett How Mushrooms Changed the World
Clark University Faculty Page, Curriculum Vitae - Kristen Wickert
Plant Pathology and Fungi - Facebook April 16, 2020 - Chad Hyatt author of The Mushroom Hunters Kitchen
2019
- Thea Chesney Mushrooming in the Sierra Nevada (and Beyond).
- Lukas Martinelli Fungal Partnerships: The Microbial Roots of Life.
- J.R. Blair Mycorrizae.
- Dr. Roo Vandegrift Biodiversity.
- Brian Claus Anicola.
- A panel of SOMA mushroom maestros How to best look for mushrooms.
2018
- Taylor Lockwood Biolumiscence.
- Fran Angerer An overview discussion on Truffles - History, Farming, Science and Harvesting.
- Kingman Bond-Graham Hunting By Habitat. Recognizing Opportunities For Mushroom Foraging In California.
- Juniper Harrower Symbiosis under climate change: Investigating Joshua trees and their mycorrhizal fungi.
- Rick Kerrigan Introducing Agaricus.
- Richard Tehan Evolution of secondary metabolism in Tolypocladium and hypocrealean fungi.
- Patrick Hamilton Tales of mushrooming from Costa Rica to Alaska plus a few fine dishes to taste.
2017
- David Campbell Truffles and Mushrooms of Northern Italy plus .
- Paige Mandelare A Tale of Two Fungi: Coculturing of Mediterranean Marine Endophytes.
- Anna Bazzicalupo Benjamin Woo's Russula Herbarium and his contribution to science.
- Dan Thomas The ancient and new landscape: how scientists are re-learning to see a world connected by fungi.
- Kathleen Harrison Psilocybin Mushrooms in Mazatec Mexico: Glimpse an Indigenous Worldview.
- Alan Rockefeller
- Heather Slinn
2016
- Brian A. Perry Fungal diversity in Hawaii
- Noah Siegel Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast
- Christian Schwarz MycoMysteries: A guide to what we don't know
- Jackie Shay A Hunt for Marasmius
- Catherine Adams Amanita phalloides
- Natalie Hambalek
- Darvin Deshazer and George Riner Wild Mushroom Identification
2015
- Dorothy Beebee The History and Legacy of Mushroom Dyes
- Justin Reyes A look at Gourmet Mushrooms Inc/Mycopia Mushrooms
- Joshua Harrison The Fungi Within: the Ecological Importance of Symbiotic Fungi
- Chris Grace
- Sydney Glassman Ectomycorrhizal Fungal Spore Bank Recovery After a Severe Forest Fire: Some Like it Hot
- Michael Beug Love of Western Ascomycetes
- Alan Rockefeller Mushrooms of Mexico
- Darvin DeShazer Polypores -- The Forgotten Family
2014
- Dr. Denis Desjardin
- Patrick Hamilton How to be a really good mushroom hunter
- Sephanie Jarvis Trufflere, Truffle Cultivation in Modern Times
- Noah Siegel Let It Bleed: The Lactarius of California
- Arthur Charles Grupe II Sarcodon in the Neotropics: Four new species and the immerging circum-Caribbean distribution.
- Ben Waitman Nitrogen pollution in Forests: How do ectomycorrhizal fungi factor in?
- Denis R. Benjamin Mushroom ‘Poisoning’ Not Due To Toxins
- Sydney Glassman
2013
- Roo Vandegrift Diversity and dispersal of tropical forest Xylariaceae
- Meredith Sabini The Art of Collecting: Tales and Tips from 30 Years on the Mountain
- Christian Schwarz, Amateurs at the Helm -- The unique role of citizen scientists in assembling the North American Mycoflora Project
- Patrick Hamilton, The Mycochef, Morels and More
- Alija Bajro Mujic Have Rake, Will Travel: Following the Ancestral Migration of Douglas Fir and it False-Truffle Associates
- Noah Siegel Mushrooms of the Redwood Coast
- Walt Sturgeon Just For the Smell of It: Mushroom Common Scents: a non-technical look at wild mushrooms from an olfactory perspective.
- Todd Osmundson Of species, spores, and the spiral ladder: How DNA has shaped our understanding of fungal diversity, distribution, phylogeny and ecology.
- Alija Bajro Muji (SOMA Scholarship winner) Have Rake, Will Travel: Following the Ancestral Migration of Douglas Fir and it False-Truffle Associates.
2012
- Rytas Vilgalys
- Terry Henkel
- Todd Osmundson
- Alan Rockefeller Mushrooms of Mexico
2011
- Jenny Talbot Dishing the dirt on decomposition: how soil fungi shape the ecosystem carbon cycle
- Daniel Winkler Mushroaming
- David Pilz Wild Mushroom Management in Spain: What might be applicable here?
- Dr. Matt Trappe Shaking the Fungal Tree of Life
- Leon Shernoff Boletes Come of Age
- Nhu Nguyen Mycological symbioses: tales of fungi that live with insects, bacteria, and plants
- Bob Cummings Red Amanitas, Black Trumpets, & White Porcini Mushroom Hunting in Santa Barbara
- Langdon Cook From Woods to Plate: Wild Mushroom Cookery
- Connie Green and Patrick Hamilton: A Show and Tell
- Else Vellinga: The naming of mushrooms -- insights into the work of a mushroom taxonomist
2010
- David Arora: The Wheel of Fungi: Chapter 8
- Valerie Wong: Breaking Down Symbiosis: Searching for mechanisms of mycoheterotroph parasitism
- Darvin DeShazer: California Edibles
- Peter Werner: Psilocybe and allies of California, as well as other psilocybin mushrooms of the state
- Mia Maltz: Mycorenewal and Biodiversity: Investigating the effect of fungal amendments for increasing plant establishment in contaminated soil
- Jennifer Kerekes: A look at the diversity and ecology of saprotrophic fungal communities
2009
- William Rubel, with David Arora: The History of Amanita muscaria as an Edible Mushroom And a Look at Cultural Bias in Field Guides
- DVD by Taylor Lockwood, The Good, the Bad, and the Deadly: a special showing of the latest DVD by Taylor Lockwood.
- David Campbell, Rocky Monsoon Mushrooms: A peek at summer fungi of southwestern Colorado
- Nicole Hynson, When fungi host plants: unraveling the role of mycorrhizal specificity in myco-heterotrophic plants
- Elio Schaecter, Mushrooms Through the Ages
- Maggie Rodgers, Hooked on Mushroomers?
- Kathryn Harper, Toxic and Hallucinogenic Mushroom Identification via a DNA-based Macroarray
- Gary Lincoff, Appearance and Reality: Knowing what’s what and why in the fungi
2008
- Glenn Shepard, Jr, Attitudes toward and Uses of Mushrooms in Traditional Cultures: An overview
- Dimitar Bochantev, Sierra Nevada—Fungal Diversity along the roads less travelled
- David Rust, A mushroomer's Guide to Sudden Oak Death
- Chris Kjeldson, Why Fungi: From Elvis the King to Environmental Engineers
- David Campbell, Fungimental Mycophagy: a forest-to-table discussion about the basics and beyond of eating wild mushrooms
- Mia Maltz, Amazon Mycorenewal Project
- Dorothy Beebee, Fiber and Fungi—the First Forty Years
- Dr. Tom Volk, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-La Crosse
2007
- Dr. Sveta Yamin-Pasternak, PhD, Polar Regions Research, National Science Foundation: "From Tomorrow to Yesterday with a Myco-Scope Lens: Mushroom Tales from Russia and Alaska"
- Taylor Lockwood, New Book: Chasing the Rain: My Treasure Hunt for the World's Most Beautiful Mushrooms
- Dr. Roberto Garibay Orijel, Ph.D., UC Berkeley: "Men and Fungi, a travel through time and civilizations."
- Dr. Terry Henkel, Ph.D., Humboldt State Univeristy: "Going Fungal in the Jungle."
- Darvin DeShazer, Sonoma County Mycological Association.
- Tara Fulgenzi, Humboldt State University:"Boletaceae of Guyana."
- S. Coleman McCleneghan, Ph.D., "Fungal Stories from the Great Smoky Mountain ATBI: Documenting Friends and Foes."
- Gary Lincoff, New York Botanical Garden.
2006
- Dr. Ralph Metzner, Ph.D. Ayahuasca and the psilocybe mushrooms and how they relate to psychotherapy, shamanic journey practices and alchemical divination.
- Bob Engel of Gourmet Mushroom.
- Charmoon Richardson, Wild About Mushrooms Co. "Wild Culinary Mushrooms of Northern California."
- Judy Roger, North American Mycological Association. "The Oregon Chanterelle Study—20 years and Counting…"
- Dr. Beug, Ph.D., North American Mycological Association. "Reflections on Mushroom Poisonings."
- Denise Gregory, San Francisco State University. "Endophytic Fungi."
- Debbie Viess (AKA Amanitarita). "Amanitas of California."
- Leon Shernoff, Illinois Mycological Association and editor of Mushroom, the Journal of Wild Mushrooming. "How do you know when a mushroom is strange?"
2005
- Dr. Rytas Vilgalys, Ph.D., Duke University. "The secret lives of mushrooms."
- Dr. Matteo Garbelotto, Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley. "The Tanoak Mycorrhiza Community: Predicting the Effects of P. ramorum."
- Dr. Largent, Ph.D., Humboldt State University, emeritus. "The Fantastic Features of Fungi."
- Andy Wilson, Clark University. "Gymnopus."
- Dr. Dennis Desjardin, Ph.D., San Francisco State University, Mycological Society of San Francisco. "Why I Am A Mycologist."
- Dr. Fred Stevens, Ph.D. "Agaricus of California."
- Carla Mueller. "Enchanted Swedish Mushrooms."
- Dr. Tom Volk, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. "Where Have All The Hydnums Gone?"
2004
- Dr. Bruce Ing, Ph.D., University College, Chester. "The Natural History of Myxomycetes."
- Dr. Gastón Guzmán, Ph.D., Instituto de Ecología at Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico. "Traditions Of Mexican Mushrooms: Edible, Medicinal And Sacred."
- Scott Bates, University of Arizona. "Southwestern puffballs and earthstars: monography, phylogeny and spore ultrastructure in the Lycoperdaceae and Geastraceae."
- Dr. Tom Bruns, Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley. "Observations on the Natural History of Ectomycorrhizal Fungi."
- Megan Romberg, University of California, Davis. "Experiments in dyeing with Fusarium."
- Dr. Donald Kowalski, Ph.D., California State University Chico, emeritus. "California Slime Molds."
- Dr. Elio Schaechter, Ph.D., San Diego Mycological Society.
- Gary Lincoff, New York Botanical Garden.
2003
- Dr. Jim Trappe, Ph.D.. "Truffles In Australia…And Why Do We Care?"
- Lawrence Glacy,"Panda Nature Reserves in China and their Fungal Ecology."
- Matthew Keile, University of Chicago. "Coprinoid Fungi of Hawaii."
- Dr. Lisa Grubisha, Ph.D.. "Channel Islands: Biogeography of Rhizopogon."
- Janice Alexander, University of California Cooperative Extension and California Oak Mortality Task Force. "Oak Death: Phytophthora ramorum in California."
- Dr. Steve Trudell, Ph.D., University of Washington. "Mycorrhizal Fungi: Foundation of Our Forests."
- Dr. Michael Kuo, Ph.D., Eastern Illinois University. "Everything we Know About Morels."
- Dr. Rod Tulloss, Ph.D..
