Steve Carpenter, Ph.D., is the owner of Abbey Lane Laboratory, LLC in Philomath, OR, and has been collecting and consuming mushrooms since 1956. He graduated from OSU with a BS in Botany, Cornell with an MS in Mycology, and later was a Fellow at the New York Botanical Garden, where he received his Ph.D. from the City University of New York. He was a Research Associate in mycology at the LA Museum of Natural History in the 1980’s and a National Science Foundation Principal Investigator at OSU until 1988. Steve was a member of numerous mycology expeditions to the Andean chain in South America while at NYBG. Upon his return to Oregon, he researched microbial recovery at the Mt. St. Helens devastation zone and microbial interactions in old growth forest ecosystems. His current projects include characterization of fungi that kill amphibians in North America as part of the USGS work on the worldwide amphibian dieback, and use of molds as biocontrol agents. He also provides mushroom identification services at the Corvallis Farmer’s Market and mushroom identification classes through the Community School Partnership in Philomath, Oregon.