The results are in …
The Great Aussie Fungi Hunt 2026 was our biggest yet, with 4,899 observers contributing an extraordinary 53,172 observations and documenting 1,534 fungal species from every state and territory in Australia.
Behind those numbers were muddy knees, wet cameras, hours peering under logs, and 818 volunteer identifiers generously sharing their expertise to help turn photographs into valuable biodiversity records.
So, who took out this year’s prizes?
Most Observations — em_lamond, Western Australia
With an extraordinary month of fungi hunting, em_lamond recorded 1, 265 observations of potentially 193 species. Among his finds was this intriguing little Microglossum — a genus of tiny earth tongues. Even more excitingly, it is the first Microglossum record for Western Australia on iNaturalist (although older, as-yet-undigitised collections may exist elsewhere). Best of all, a specimen was collected. So this observation doesn’t end with a photograph. Watch this space!
Most Species — Helen Robertson
688 species. In one month. Yes, you read that correctly. Retired zoologist Helen Robertson became hooked on fungi about 12 years ago, after a brilliant purple Cortinarius archeri appeared on her property at Rocky Cape in Tasmania. Since then, fungi hunting has become a passion — and this year’s Hunt shows just how deep that passion runs.
Helen documented an extraordinary 688 species. We’ll let a small selection of her wonderfully diverse finds tell the rest of the story.
Most High-Quality Research Grade Observations — Shane Marshall
This one went right down to the wire between two Tasmanians — Helen Robertson and Shane Marshall. Helen had the numbers, but after our identifiers took a closer look at the observations, Shane edged ahead for accuracy and quality of his Research Grade observations of Australian species.
And knowing Helen, we’re pretty sure she’ll be happy to share the fungi merch love.
✨ Most Exciting or Rarest Finds — Christine Jones and Heather Merrylees
We couldn’t stop at one. Christine Jones turned up something potentially very exciting: a fungus in the genus Cocoonihabitus. It may represent the first Australian record of the genus.
Heather Merrylees – who – fittingly is helping curate Australian fungal names – photographed a fascinating member of the Helotiales order growing on a fern frond in Victoria
Both are wonderful examples of what the Great Aussie Fungi Hunt is really about: getting thousands of eyes into the bush and documenting fungi that might otherwise go completely unnoticed.
And a huge thank you to our identifiers
None of this works without the extraordinary people behind the scenes who spend hours examining photographs, debating IDs and sharing their specialist knowledge.
This year, 818 people helped identify observations, with almost a quarter of all Hunt records reaching Research Grade.
A special shout-out goes to our five most active identifiers — Jess Bamford, Elizabeth Hatfield, Jeremy Hegge, Claire Pronk and Shane Marshall — who each receive a Planet Fungi Mini Calendar as a small thank-you for a very large contribution.
And finally, thank you to every single person who joined the Hunt — whether you uploaded one fungus or a thousand.
Together, you’re helping build a picture of Australia’s remarkable fungal diversity, one observation at a time.
See you in the Great Aussie Fungi Hunt 2027.