Wild Mushroom Rule of Thumb Guide?

[nitaschild]

Hey guys! Im new and I was thinking about this the other day, are there any general rules ie. 'rules of thumb' that one can go about when looking for@ wild mushrooms. I heard a friend tell me that if the gills are connected to the cap but not the stem then there is a good chance its poisonous? Stuff like that. What would you guys say are some good rule of thumb instances when identifying wild mushrooms?

My rule of thumb that has served me well for 20 years is to have at least 5 field identification guides, learn how to use a dichotomous key,take sporeprints and study them, and learn identifying characteristics of poisonous mushrooms as well as choice edibles.
I fear spending a night on the toilet pooping my brains out as much as i fear liver arrest from eating mushrooms though- your mileage may vary.

[suckerfree]

My rule of thumb has always been... if you have to ask or look it up in a book then DON'T eat it... that's why we are here... grow your own mang...

[TVCasualty]

Psilocybes are easier to ID than most gilled fungi, as the two main characteristics that BOTH must be present are purplish-black spores and that it bruises blue. Just one of those isn't enough for a positive ID, and some trip mushrooms might not clearly show both features, but it's always better to reject a mushroom (if there is even the slightest doubt) than to eat even part of one of the wrong kind. Even then, people have different ideas about "purplish black" and Galerinas have a rusty-brown print (and eating one can kill you), so you are trusting a lot to your ability to tell the difference between purplish and rusty brown (though there won't be any Galerinas on a pile of poop in a Southern pasture). A Galerina won't bruise blue, but have been seen and photographed growing out of the same clump of vegetation as psilocybes, and could easily be grabbed along with the good ones. Positively ID each and every specimen, in other words.

Then there's edibles. Unless it's a polypore (of which no known poisonous species exist), go with multiple guides and keys, and make one of your guides an experienced human! Not only that, make sure they are experienced in the local area, since there are some edibles in other parts of the world that look a lot like poisonous ones here (this fact has killed or seriously harmed some immigrants who were otherwise very experienced, for example).

When looking to pick and eat wild mushrooms, you don't want to go by "rules of thumb" (which imply relatively loose, general guidelines to me). You want to go by very strict, literal, specific rules, verified with multiple sources like greysRDbest said he uses (I'd bet he won't eat an unfamiliar wild mushroom if there's any doubt about the species; "close enough" is not adequate for edible wild fungi identification).

Lastly, always leave a few specimens uneaten so the doctors can figure out what they are in case you make a mistake. This might help get you the proper treatment in time, like a liver transplant, or just provide a more detailed account of your demise.

There's probably a local mushroom club around you somewhere, and they are good people to meet and go hunting with (for the edibles at least) to gain experience.