Elusive Mushroom Will Pop Up In RI Forests; Here's How To Find Them

Morels are among the most sought-after wild mushrooms globally.

By Joseph Hosey, Patch Staff

Apr 13, 2026 11:08 am EDT | Updated Apr 13, 2026 11:09 am EDT

The season for one of springtime’s most delectable and elusive treats — the morel, often called the “sacred mushroom” — is now underway in multiple states, but hasn’t yet arrived in Rhode Island.

Morels are among the most sought-after wild mushrooms globally. Despite the secretive nature of morel hunters, many share the date and general location of their finds on The Great Morel.

As the weather warms, remember that the window for finding morels is brief. These decaying fungi emerge from the ground only when the atmospheric conditions and pollen counts perfectly align.

The timing of the morel mushroom season is heavily influenced by weather patterns. Typically, the best time for mushroom hunting has passed by Mother’s Day, which falls on Sunday, May 10, this year.

The ‘Sacred Mushroom’

Alex Guarnaschelli of “Iron Chef” called them the “sacred mushroom.” Don’t pass up the chance to savor the deliciousness of these earthy, woodsy, and nutty flavors of spring if you haven't tried them before.

Morels are a distinctive type of fungus, sharing a closer relationship with the truffle than with other mushrooms. Like truffles, the morel is the fruiting body of a fungus, emerging from the moist soil of woods and forests.

While the exact number of morel species is debated, the most frequently encountered varieties are the black and yellow morels. Both are easily identified by their unique appearance: a stem supporting a conical cap covered in a honeycomb-like pattern of pits and ridges. This distinctive structure makes them instantly recognizable to experienced foragers.

Morel mushrooms are used heavily in French cooking, but the most common among morel cooking methods in the United States is to dip the mushrooms in egg, dredge the mushrooms in flour or seasoned bread crumbs or crackers, and fry them in butter.

Before You Head Into The Woods …

Mushrooms are typically found from March to May. Morels prefer certain habitats, for example, near the base of dead or dying elm trees or around ash, tulip, and old apple trees. Experienced hunters also report finding them in areas around washes, downed trees or logging areas, old flood plains, and burn sites.

The website Mushroom Appreciation offers morel hunting tips. After nighttime low temperatures warm up to 40 degrees or above, head out into the woods on a warm morning after a spring rain.

Before you start your hunt, make sure you can tell the difference between an edible morel and a poisonous false morel. Eating a false morel can make you sick or even be fatal. For a complete guide to identification, check out this page on morel mushroom identification.

No matter how tempting, “don’t pick every mushroom you see,” the site suggests. “Leave a few, so they can continue to drop spores and you and others can enjoy them for years to come.”

Also, be sure to take along a map, compass and a phone with GPS tracking. Go with a friend if possible. Mace or pepper spray is a good idea, too, in case you run into a moose, bear or dog taking exception to you tromping around the woods.

The site Mushroom Appreciation cautions against outright asking hunters where precisely to find morel mushrooms, though.

“If you have superior charm and people skills, you might try asking about local morels in a roundabout and modest way,” the site advises. “Just beware that you may not get the desired response, or you may wind up with directions to the local haunted forest!”

The Great Morel is accepting reports of morel sightings through its website or by emailing them to sightings@thegreatmorel.com with the ZIP code, city, state and date found, along with any other helpful information, such as weather conditions. Don’t worry — the exact location where hunters found the morels is sacrosanct.