Common Edible Mushrooms

COMMON EDIBLE MUSHROOMS
and its scaly cap enable one to distinguish it readily from any
Amanitas, and the pink gills of young specimens of Agaricus and
the purple spores and gills of mature specimens permit positive
identification, but species about which one is in doubt should not
be eaten!
Fortunately, few species of Amanita are very common outside
the forested areas, but even the most deadly ones are found now
and again almost wherever wild mushrooms grow.*
Poisonous: AMANITA PHALLOIDES (Death Cap)
This deadly species (Figure 6) has been blamed for a large
proportion of the cases of fatal mushroom poisoning, since it is
fairly common throughout the North Temperate Zone in America
and Europe. Even a small piece is sufficient to cause serious illness
or death. A clinical account of the death of four persons from
amanitine poisoning is quoted in Mushrooms aiid Toadstools by
Giissow and Odell, one of the references cited on page 119. A careful
reading of the progress of the poisoning, through all stages
from cramping pains and delirium to painful death, should serve
as sufficient warning to hasty or careless mushroom hunters. It is
easy enough to learn and to bear in mind the unmistakable Amanita
characteristics — so easy that to ignore them is unforgivable.
Several varieties of A. phalloides occur, differing chiefly in
color, size, and some microscopic characters. The cap is from
2 to 6 inches wide, a pale grayish brown near the center but
nearly white toward the margin, convex when young and later
sloping downward from the center like an inverted saucer; in old
specimens the margin is raised up slightly above the rest of the
cap. The surface is sticky when moist, but in dry weather it must
be dampened to reveal this quality. Often on newly expanded
caps, soft, white, warty patches of mycelium are scattered over
the surface, but these soon disappear. The gills are white and do
not touch the stem, being free as in Lepiota arid Agaricus. The
* The first-aid procedure for any poison taken by mouth is to have the
stomach pumped or to induce vomiting as soon as possible. Call your doctor!
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