POISONING BY WHITE-SPORED AGARICS 



AMANITA PHALLOIDES 



(See A. vema, virosa and bisporiger.) 



Amanita phaUoides is by long odds the most important of all 

 poisonous mushrooms. It is widely distributed, common through- 

 out most of the season and often exceedingly abundant. It is in- 

 nocent in appearance, of delicious taste and of extreme toxicity. 

 In considering it we may regard A. vema, A. virosa and A. bis- 

 poriger as included under the term "A. phaUoides:' Bulliard a 

 hundred years ago gave it the common name "Destroying Angel." 

 It is also known as the Death Cup, White or Deadly Amanita. 

 The earlier species, named in Europe, such as Amanita bulbosa and 

 its varieties, alba, citrina, rirescens and olivacea, Agaricus bulbosus, 

 Amanita viridis, A. venenosa and a number of others are without 

 doubt identical. In older French literature it is known as Vorange 

 eigne, Vorange souris, Vorange blanche ou citronee, Vorange eigne 

 jaundtre and Vargaric bulbeux and in German as Giftwulstling 

 and KnoJJenblaetterschwamm. 1 Its identification is comparatively 

 simple even in its disguises and no one who does not know this fun- 

 gus well should dare to eat wild mushrooms or to recommend a por- 

 tion of such to his neighbor. The possibility of its presence in a 

 collection intended for the table should always be rigorously ex- 

 cluded. The 153 deaths of 1912, above mentioned, were due chiefly 

 to A. phaUoides. Gillot's thesis 4 maintains that all fatal cases are 

 due to this Agaric. This is not strictly true. The statement that 

 nine-tenths of all fatal cases are due to it, seems conservative 

 enough. In 1S45 Orfia reported 8 ill and 1 dead from its inges- 

 tion ; Il.x-k Ziemssen, 11 fatal cases; Mautner i lSlil >, 1 eases with 

 one death; Handford (Lancet, 1886), 2 fatal; Palmer, 16 cases, 7 

 fatal; Tappeiner, 5 cases, 2 fatal; Pfromm, 1 Italians, all died; 

 Plownght, <; cases. 1 fatal; Bulletin of French MVcological Society 

 IS deaths L900-07; in October, 1884, eleven children died in an orph- 

 anage in 5 days. Incomplete records for southeastern Michigan (10 

 years) show 1(> deaths in 11 due to phaUoides illnesses. In 22 of 

 this 11 the white the Amanita was surely to blame, in 11 probably. 

 in 5 presumably. 



Surprisingly small quantities may bring on fatal consequences 



