Lawyer Up

Congratulations, you’ve just been served—by the little lawyers of the mushroom world. Clusters of Lawyer’s Wigs, Coprinus comatus, love to congregate in passerby places: roadside ditches, the local dog park, and beside graffiti-tagged bus shelters.

These mushies work pro bono—popping up freely among grassy areas. No need for day-long foraging expeditions; just grab a shopping bag and take a stroll around the block.

The flavour of Lawyer’s Wigs is delicately mild, with hints of crab meat and tinned asparagus. If you fry them until golden, they take on a subtle macadamia note. Even when thoroughly fried crisp, they retain a velvety, melt-in-your-mouth texture. Chef's kiss, absolutely delicious!

But you’ll never find them on a restaurant menu. They’re ephemeral by design; within two hours of picking, they self-destruct, melting into a pool of eerie black ink. This ink is how they spread their spores. If you collect their ink, it's ideal for watercolour painting, calligraphy, or scribbling fairytale stories.

If left undisturbed in the ground, they’ll linger for a couple of extra days before dissolving. I like to imagine woodland fairies harvesting those inky droplets to adorn tree trunk canvases—painting maps of the wind and portraits not meant for human eyes.

The ink is a useful ID confirmation, but by then they’re past their prime, and taste bitter.

For beginner foragers, they’re an easily recognisable mushroom. They're distinctively long and tall, with shaggy fur-like scales on their caps. ID Checklist: 1. Cap (fancy mushroom nerds call it a Pileus):

Shape: Cylindrical – tall and oval, not your typical umbrella shape. Texture: Covered in visible shaggy scales (resembling a wig). Soft to the touch, disintegrating when rubbed between fingers. Colour: White to cream. 2. Gills (Lamellae): Shape: Crowded, free from the stem. Colour: White when young, pink with age, and black when decaying. 3. Stem (Stipe): Shape: Long, uniform thickness, around 1cm diameter. Hollow.

Ring: A movable white ring (annulus) that slides freely up and down the stem, which may detach with age. Texture: Soft and splits easily into strips. 4. Size: Height: 7–25 cm.

5. Spore print: Black. 6. When and where? Autumn and early winter, after heavy rains. I've found plenty in grassy areas in Reservoir, Fitzroy Gardens and Dandenong.

Toxic lookalike: Magpie Mushroom, Coprinopsis picacea.  Why it’s tricky: Similar tall, cylindrical shape, and inky-drip decay. Key difference: Its dramatic markings are a dead giveaway—like a magpie’s feathers. A gothic beauty with a cap splattered in black and white patches. It's also smooth, without the fur like scales. Toxicity: Contains an unknown toxin.

Toxic lookalike: Magpie Mushroom

Potentially Toxic lookalike: Common Ink Cap, Coprinopsis atramentaria. Why it’s tricky: Shares the same inky self-destruction. Young specimens can look deceptively plain. Key difference: Much smaller and smoother, without the furry-like texture. Often pale brown to dark brown depending on age. Toxicity: Contains coprine, a compound that turns toxic when mixed with alcohol. Mix these with booze, even a few days later, and your next night out might end with a coma instead of just embarrassment. But if you don't drink, this mushroom can be considered a safe edible!

Potentially Toxic lookalike: Common Ink Cap

It's a common misconception that you cannot consume alcohol with Lawyer’s Wigs. While long debunked, this rumour still circulates as a kind of foraging folklore. While mushrooms like Common Ink Caps contain coprine, Lawyer’s Wigs definitely do not.

Whenever you’re identifying a mushroom for the first time, always cross-check with a reliable identification group—many of which can be found on Facebook. With some luck, a knowledgeable mycologist will confirm your ID, and put to rest the 'steer clear of booze' old wifes' tale which predictably ends up in the comments!