"Mushroom Ninja" Explores the Beautiful World of Exotic Fungi on His Hikes

The world is full of natural treasures, which Ryan Grastorf found out firsthand only about a year and a half ago. “As an effort to reduce stress in life, I just started hiking more,” he told Instagram Blog. “I found a mushroom, a very cool looking mushroom, and the rest is kind of history.”

Now, the Baltimore-based full-time student, whose Instagram followers know him as the Mushroom Ninja, spends his free time capturing images of the wonderful world of fungi. From the cartoonish toadstool to alien-like forms of fungi, Grastorf has amassed an amazing portfolio of multi-colored, -shaped, and -sized mushrooms–some of which look nothing like what you'd imagine a fungal growth to look like. He estimates he's encountered and photographed roughly 150 different kinds of mushrooms; and with a growing base of over 22,000 followers, Grastorf has been able to rely on his Instagram community to help him identify most of them.

Check out a small, diverse sampling of Grastorf's growing collection of fungi photos below, but be sure to follow him on Instagram for even more mushroom madness.

Ryan “Mushroom Ninja” Grastorf: Instagram
via [Instagram Blog]

Pinar

Pinar Noorata (she/her) is the Editorial Director at My Modern Met. She is a writer, editor, and content creator based in Brooklyn, New York. She earned her BA in Film and Media Studies from CUNY Hunter College. She has worked at major TV, film, and publishing companies as well as other independent media businesses. She also runs her own art & culture newsletter called The High Low. She first joined the My Modern Met team in 2011 as a Contributing Writer, pitching and publishing articles about a wide range of topics. Her expertise in visual media lends itself to in-depth analysis of varied art forms, including but not limited to painting, illustration, sculpture, installation, design, and photography. Pinar has a particular affinity for spotlighting up-and-coming artists, affording them a platform and offering a voice to lesser-heard individuals looking to break through, especially BIPOC creatives. She has helped multiple artists make a name for themselves and reach a wider audience over 10+ years as a writer and editor (both through long-form articles and short-form videos). When she isn’t writing, editing, or creating videos herself, Pinar enjoys watching films and TV, reading, crafting, drawing, frequenting museums and galleries, and volunteering at her local animal shelter.
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