- cap is up to 8cm wide, has characteristic honeycomb surface consisting of black/brown ridges and dark brown pits, darkening with age.
- bottom of cap does not hang loose but is fused to the stem.
- cap and stem are hollow, and form a single, continuous hollow chamber.
- stem is whitish, smooth
- grows singly or in numbers on the ground,
- appears in early spring.
- taste and odor are mild, pleasant; cook before eating.
- tip: morels are variable in shape, size and color (white/gray/yellow/green/pink/brown/black), but are characterized by their distinctively convoluted caps that form a single, continuous hollow chamber with the stem. All true morels (species of Morchella) are edible when cooked.
- warning: morels are poisonous when raw, and should be thoroughly cooked.
- warning: may be poisonous if consumed with alcohol.
- warning: do not confuse with the inedible/poisonous false morels, which differ in that the cap and stem do not form a single, continuous hollow chamber.
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