Taurine is one of the essential amino acids for humans and many of mammals. It is produced and contained in fishes, shells, plants and algae, but has never been found in fungi. We examined six mushrooms for taurine and detected taurine in five of them. Taurine was determined by an automated amino acid analyzer using ion-exchange chromatography, being eluted between phosphoserine as a distinct peak on the chromatogram. Fruit bodies of Flammulina velutipes contained 83 μmoles/100g fresh wt, the highest level among them, Agaricus bisporos 65 μmoles, Lentinus edodes 49 μmoles, Pleurotus ostreatus 9 μmoles, and Auricularia auricula-judae 20 μmoles. Taurine was not detected in Ganoderma lucidum. As far as fungi are concerned, this is the first report of the detection of taurine in Basidiomyces.