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Brown deer mushrooms on a mossy log
Edibleintermediate

Deer Mushroom

Pluteus cervinus / Fawn mushroom

A brown-capped mushroom on dead wood with free white gills that turn pink and a pink spore print.

Photo: Tristan Jobin, CC BY
Compiled by Mushroom Forage Map field deskExpert review pendingContent checked
Identification warning

Confirm pink spores and free gills. Some Pluteus contain psychoactive compounds, and Entoloma are toxic.

Season
Spring to autumn
Habitat
Rotting logs, stumps, sawdust, and buried wood
Underside
Free, crowded gills, white turning pink
Spore evidence
Pink

Where it grows

Tracked records and known growing zone

Explore on the field map
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Squares: where people recorded it, brighter where more people did
Verified records
6,154
People who recorded it
3,244
Most records (northern hemisphere)
Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct
Records span
2002–2026

Research-grade iNaturalist records, snapshot Aug 27, 2026. The growing zone combines areas where different people have repeatedly verified it. Records show where people looked and found it, not current abundance or permission to gather.

Observation season

When field records occur

Choose a hemisphere · All recorded years; not a current forecast.

Choose the hemisphere you want to study. Country detection is approximate and some countries span the equator.

Compare before concluding

Lookalikes to rule out

Amanita

deadly

Amanita drop white spores and have a volva or ring.

Other Pluteus

caution

Several Pluteus look similar; a few are psychoactive.

Identification

The cap is smooth, brown, sometimes with darker radial streaks. The gills are free from the stem, white when young, then pink. The stem has no ring or volva. It grows on dead wood, sometimes buried.

Uses and ecology

Deer mushrooms are common wood decomposers across the Northern Hemisphere. They are edible but often considered bland.

Memorable fact

It can fruit in every month without hard frost, making it one of the longest-season woodland mushrooms.

Sources

Never eat a mushroom from this page alone

Confirm identity using the whole specimen, multiple reputable sources, and a qualified local expert. Identified edible species still require appropriate preparation. Cooking does not make a poisonous mushroom safe.

Safety and poison response
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