The morel of the story

Wild morel mushrooms grow on a hillside in rural Douglas County, Ore. Morel mushrooms are prized by gourmet cooks particularly for French cuisine.  The morel mushroom has many colorful local names in the United States including molly moochers, hickory chickens, and dryland fish.

I found the morels growing in a recent clearcut near my home in southwestern Oregon.

While I was photography the mushrooms a cheeky little ladybug made a cameo appearance. You can also see her/him in the photo above at right.

I picked a few dozen and sauteed them with butter and olive oil for dinner.