They
were a few feet off the old woods road, gleaming brilliant white on the forest
floor despite it being a gray, dreary, drizzly day. “They” were a scattering of
mushrooms of the genus Amanita; one
of several species of white Amanita that
are difficult to differentiate, which even some field guides apparently
confuse, all going by the common name “destroying angel”.
Destroying
angel is an excellent name for these mushrooms – my favorite field guide to
mushrooms notes that they are “Poisonous – deadly” and goes on to state “Do not
taste this mushroom”. Another field guide cautions against even touching these
mushrooms.
Over 45
years ago I listened to an account of a family that had eaten a mushroom stew
later estimated to contain just one of these highly toxic mushrooms – five
members of the family died. More recently, not far north of here, an elderly
gentleman, who had gathered and eaten wild mushrooms throughout his life, died
a prolonged and painful death after having eaten a destroying angel by mistake.
All of
the literature on mushroom poisoning describes the process in similar terms:
There are no symptoms for several hours (4-24) after which vomiting, diarrhea
and severe abdominal pain set in; some people also become delirious and may have
convulsions. These symptoms can last for several days, but then subside and the
person seems to improve. However, left untreated the mushroom’s toxins proceed
to cause severe damage to the person’s liver and kidneys which usually results
in death in one to two weeks.
But, there's an angelic side to these fungi also. The
destroying angel, like all Amanita species,
is important to the forest ecosystem because they are mycorrhizal fungi that
grow in and around the fine roots of trees. In this relationship the tree
provides the fungus with carbohydrates and the fungus provides the tree with
water and minerals. Without mycorrhizal fungi trees grow more slowly and are
not as productive and some plants, such as many of our native orchids, cannot
survive. It has been estimated that 80 percent of all species of plants are
dependent on mycorrhizal fungi to varying degrees.
So,
some may ask, do I gather and eat wild mushrooms – NOPE. There are too many
species that are toxic, many species are difficult to identify with any
accuracy, and – as the old fellow found out – even experienced people can make
a fatal mistake.
I unknowingly picked a destroying angel mushroom and carried it around in my bare hand for about ten minutes before I realized what it was. Should I be concerned?
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