Skip to main content
UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences logo
Give      University of Florida
Resources
    Toggle Search Form
    GIVE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
    • HOME
    • ABOUT US
          • General
          • About the Department

          • History
          • IFAS History
          • Land Grant

          • Social Media
          • Facebook
          • Instagram
          • Twitter
          • blogs.IFAS
    • PEOPLE
          • Faculty
          • Faculty Directory
          • Emeritus Faculty
          • Staff
          • Staff Directory
          • Postdocs
          • Postdoc Directory
          • Graduate Students
          • Graduate Student Directory
          • Index
          • A-Z Index
    • RESEARCH
          • Areas of Research
          • Bacteriology and Plant Interactions
          • Cropping Systems and Disease Management
          • Disease Diagnostics and Pathogen Detection
          • Epidemiology and Modeling
          • Fungal and Oomycete Biology, Plant Interactions
          • Microbial Bioinformatics, Evolution, and Phylogeny
          • Plant Disease Resistance and Biotechnology
          • Virology and Plant Interactions
          • Commodities
          • Avocado, Pomegranate, and Tropical Fruit
          • Blueberries and Strawberries
          • Citrus
          • Cotton and Row Crops
          • Cucurbits
          • Ornamentals, Palms, and Turfgrass
          • Sugar Cane
          • Tomatoes, Peppers, and Potatoes
    • ACADEMICS
          • Graduate Admissions
          • How to Apply
          • FAQ
          • Graduate Program
          • Course Syllabi
          • Graduate Catalog
          • Graduate Student Handbook
          • Graduate Student Organization
          • Undergraduate Program
          • Plant Science Degree
    • EXTENSION
          • Plant Diagnostic Resources
          • Diagnostic Resources
          • UF Plant Diagnostic Center
          • Diagnostic Labs
          • Find Your Local Office
          • Other Links
          • Solutions For Your Plants
          • Specialists
          • Agronomic Crops
          • Citrus 
          • Fruit
          • Ornamentals
          • Palms
          • Turf
          • Vegetables
          • Forestry
          • Overview
          • Other
          • U-Scout
          • Palm Diagnostic Key
          • Florida Integrated Pest Management
          • Florida First Detector
    • RESOURCES
          • Department
          • Fifield Hall Map
          • Department Equipment
          • Research Promotion Initiative
          • Public Notices
          • Forms
          • Pesticide Application
          • Room Reservation
          • Vehicle Reservation
          • Key Assignment Request
          • Hyperspectral Camera Request
          • Surplus Pickup
          • Website Update
          • Employee Exit Checklist
          • Students
          • Graduate Student Handbook
          • Autoclave Training Video
          • Graduate Student Organization
          • Graduate Student Profile Form
          • International Student Center
          • IFAS
          • IFAS Homepage
          • IFAS Shared Service Centers
          • IFAS Experts
          • IFAS Divisions, Schools, and Departments
    • CONTACT

    Plant Pathology

    Plant Pathology

    mushroom header

    Overview

    Fungal ID Services

    Mushroom Fact Sheets

    Fungal Specialist

    UF Herbarium

    University of Florida Fungal Collection

    The University of Florida Fungal Collection or Fungarium (FLAS) is one of the collections of the Florida Museum of Natural History.

    The fungarium is managed by the Plant Pathology Department and is curated by Dr. Matthew Smith. The collection is located in Building 737 (just off Hull Road west of Fifield Hall). The FLAS acronym is the standard international abbreviation for the University of Florida Fungarium. It is derived from the fungarium's association with the Florida Agricultural Experiment Station.

     

    A photo of the UF Herbarium

    The Mission

    The mission of the fungarium is to preserve fungal specimens, catalog specimens for ongoing mycological research, and to facilitate studies on fungal biology and biodiversity in Florida. Studies based on fungal specimens help us to understand the evolution of fungi (how fungi are related to each other and to other organisms) and also fungal ecology (what fungi do in the environment and how they interact with other organisms).

    The fungarium is a valuable resource that holds critical voucher collections of economic importance including: 1) plant pathogenic fungi, 2) fungi that are deadly poisonous to humans and pets when consumed, 3) fungi that are useful for commercial applications (e.g. industrial processing, bioremediation), and 4) fungi that are toxic to animals (e.g. fungi that attack forage grasses).

    A photo of a mushroom

    The fungarium currently holds more than 58,000 fungal specimens that consist of macrofungal fruiting bodies (mushrooms, shelf fungi, etc.), plants infected by fungi, and isolates of microfungi on dried agar plates. These include approximately 700 type specimens of mushrooms and related fungi that were deposited by the prolific mycologist W.A. Murrill. Several web resources document the scientific accomplishments and colorful life of Dr. Murrill (1 & 2).

    People who are interested in borrowing fungal specimens or visiting the fungarium should contact:

    Dr. Matthew Smith
    Department of Plant Pathology
    2527 Fifield Hall
    Gainesville FL 32611
    352-273-2837
    email: trufflesmith@ufl.edu

    University of Florida Logo
    Contact

    Feedback
    Department of Plant Pathology
    2550 Hull Road, PO Box 110680, Gainesville FL 32611-0680
    (352) 392-3631

    Land Grant Mission
    • Teaching
    • Research
    • Extension
    Information
    • Ask IFAS (EDIS)
    • UF/IFAS Experts
    • UF/IFAS Blogs
    • UF/IFAS Bookstore
    Policy
    • Accessible UF
    • EEO Statement
    • IFAS Web Policy
    • SSN & UF Privacy
    • Analytics (Google Privacy)

    © 2025 University of Florida, IFAS Last Modified:Tue, 16 May 2023 15:44:26 EDT