Skip to main content

Kōrero: Mushrooms and other cultivated fungi

Truffle sniffing

Image
Truffle sniffing

Truffles develop and ripen underground. They are usually found by dogs or pigs, specially trained to recognise the ripe fungi’s scent. Humans are less likely to detect them, but – as these avid truffle hunters show – they can sometimes sniff out the distinctive musky aroma when they are very close by. French folklore claims that virgin spinsters have a special talent for finding the precious fungi.

Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi

Private collection

by Gareth Renowden

This item has been provided for private study purposes (such as school projects, family and local history research) and any published reproduction (print or electronic) may infringe copyright law. It is the responsibility of the user of any material to obtain clearance from the copyright holder.

Ngā whakaahua me ngā rauemi katoa o tēnei kōrero

Me pēnei te tohu i te whārang

Maggy Wassilieff, Mushrooms and other cultivated fungi – Truffles and other ectomycorrhizal fungi, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/mi/photograph/16860/truffle-sniffing (accessed 4 June 2026).

He kōrero nā Maggy Wassilieff, i tāngia i te 1 March 2009.