Here in Catalonia, seeking mushrooms is a popular activity. There are professional seekers, but the vast majority are ordinary people that do it for the fun of it. In general, people only go after certain species that are edible, and not all species are valued the same. There is always two or three casualties every year due to ingestion of poisonous mushrooms.The exact location of a mushroom spot (a place where mushrooms are known to grow) is usually kept with utmost secrecy, even close relatives may not tell each other. For example, if you ask a stranger carrying a basket full of mushrooms where he's found them, he will only give you some vague indications, no matter how much you insist.