Hypomyces lactifluorum (lobster mushroom) and Amanita muscaria (fly agaric.
This mushroom is poisonous). Photos by Charles Hrbek.

FASCINATING FUNGI FACTS

Studies show that Fungi are more closely related to humans than they are to plants.
Even conservative estimates indicate that there are at least two tons of fungi on Earth for every human.
Many mushroom species have more than two genders, and some have dozens.
One bright mushroom, the Jack O' Lantern, emits light, joining fireflies, glowworms, and certain marine bacteria in being bioluminescent. People from around the world have used these glowing fungi as lanterns.
The Greek philosopher Porphyry called mushrooms "sons of the gods" because they are "born without seeds." This seedlessness has inspired many different theories about their origins. Among the most popular is the theory that mushrooms emerge after bolts of lightning hit the ground. This theory has been held by peoples as diverse as the ancient Greeks, the Mayans, and the Filipinos.
The species called rovello in Catalan, a delicacy today, was prized in the ancient world as well. A similar mushroom is depicted in a 1900 year-old fresco unearthed at Pompei.
About a dozen people are severely poisoned by wild mushrooms in the U.S. each year. A few of them die. Although the Centers for Disease Control do not keep records of deaths by mushroom poisoning, the number is smaller than the number killed by lightning or bee stings.
In 1991 the remains of a Stone Age man who lived 5,000 to 5,500 years ago were found in the Tyrolean Alps. Among his possessions were three different kinds of mushrooms.
In the late 1980s and again in 1996, Laotians living in California and in Oregon were poisoned by one of our most lethal mushrooms, called the "Destroying Angel". They had mistaken it for a similar looking Southeast Asian edible species.
Familiarity with mushrooms sometimes breeds conceit. The gifted composer and organist at the court of Versailles, Johann Schobert, picked mushrooms with his family in 1767 in a village near Paris. They took the mushrooms to a restaurant and asked the chef to cook them. This chef refused, as did another, saying the mushrooms were deadly. The overconfident composer then cooked them himself. Schobert, his wife, and all but one of his children died.
Some ancient societies used mushrooms for shamanistic and divination rites. Folk beliefs from nearly all European countries attribute magical and spiritual power to mushrooms.

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CAUTION: This book (and this online feature) is not intended as a recipe book or an identification guide. There are risks involved in consuming wild mushrooms. To minimize them you must obtain positive identification of each specimen. Even with proper identification, the possibility exists that the consumer may be allergic to a mushroom, or that the mushroom may in some way be anomalous. The author has been conscientious in his efforts to alert the reader to potential hazards of consuming wild mushrooms, but the reader must accept full responsibility for deciding to consume any particular specimen. Descriptions of medicinal uses of mushrooms given in this book (and on this online feature) are for educational purposes only. The author is not recommending the use of mushrooms for self-medication. Always consults a physician about such use.