Strange, Orange Finger-Like Plants Growing in Western New York

There is a very strange, orange 'pepper' looking like plant that is growing around Western New York. The kind of smell like road kill.

We live in Lancaster and we we were walking in our front yard when we saw this orange plant that was growing. It seemed like it came out of nowhere and grew pretty quick. At first, we thought maybe someone threw a pepper there and it just happened to grow. Some of the neighbors thought they looked like weird carrots. One neighbor even mentioned that they look like nerf gun arrows.

What is this orange plant called that is growing?

It is called the Stinkhorn and it is actually a mushroom. It smells horrible, almost like road kill. It seems to grow in humid locations the most. Here in New York State the weather has been particularly strange and very humid for a few weeks.

The elegant stinkhorn, botanically known as the Mutinus elegans, is a striking orange finger shooting up from the ground. It appears as a carrot which grew in the wrong direction. Imaginative observers have given this fungus other common names", according to the University of Florida.

When the mushrooms are 'blooming' it almost looks like they are emerging from eggs that are in the ground. In fact, some experts will call them 'witch's eggs'. We did some research and it looks like these mushrooms are really harmless and only just smell bad.

It is not that hard to get rid of them if you are trying to:

Remove decaying organic matter, especially sawdust piles, dead roots, underground stumps, and hardwood chip mulch.
Consider using vegetative groundcovers as opposed to mulch, and/or keep large mulched areas away from your house.