EDIBLE AND POISONOUS TOADSTOOLS. 



Bv S()M1:K\"ILL]: HA^TIXCiS. M.S.. l-.R.C.S. 



Is it edible ? Is it poisonous ? These are usually the 

 first (juestions that come to the mind of anyone who 

 is shown a toadstool of any kind, quite irrespective 

 of whether the person concerned is accustomed to 

 regard the articles of his diet with peculiar interest 

 or not. It is perhaps a ver\- primitive instinct that 

 prompts us to enquire as to tlie food \alue of 

 anything we notice for the first time. 



In this short article it is proposed to say some- 

 thing about the edible and poisonous qualities of 

 mushrooms and toadstools and then to consider of 

 what use these properties 

 are likelv to be to the fungus 

 plant. 



An exceptionally large 

 number of cases of poison- 

 ing by toadstools occurred 

 during the present autumn 

 (1912), particularly in the 

 rural districts of France. 

 On September 11th last, no 

 fewer than twenty cases, six 

 of them fatal, were reported 

 in the Fi^ciro, of Paris. Of 

 our English species one 

 hundred and ninety-four are 

 mentioned bv Dr. Cooke as 

 having been described as 

 edible by different authorities, 

 and of these Dr. Cooke has 

 himself sampled sixty - nine 

 in sufficient quantity" to be 

 sure that they are harmless. 

 About thirty or forty species 

 are described as poisonous : 

 man}' of them, it would 

 appear, upon rather slender 

 evidence; for when one begins 

 to enquire why they are 

 considered poisonous, one is met by considerable 

 difficulty, for not infrequently one finds that a 

 species described by one writer as poisonous is 

 recommended by another as edible, especially when 

 the writers are referring to different countries. No 

 doubt man\- of these discrepancies are the result of 

 mistakes in the identity of species; but the character 

 of the soil, the amount of moisture which it contains 

 and the temperature at which the toadstool develops 

 would appear to be factors of considerable import- 

 ance also. Thus the Scarlet Fly Cap {Amanita 

 muscaria) (see Figure 493), a particularly definite 

 and easilv recognised species, of the poisonous 

 qualities of which in this countr\- there is ample 

 evidence, is stated b\- more than one author to be 

 regularl}- eaten as an article of diet in parts of 

 France and Russia. Even in the same locality the 

 chemical composition of fungi seems to vary con- 



rhe Death-cup i.-l 



sidcrablv. and cases of poisoning, some of which 

 resulted in death, have even been recorded in 

 connection with the Common Morel (Morcltella 

 escitlenta). (Sec Figure 496.) The pro[)()rtions of 

 poisonoussubstances in individuals of the same species 

 have also been shown to vary considerably. Some 

 exist onlv for a short time in the life of the toadstool, 

 and others develop only with commencing decompos- 

 ition. Helvellic acid, a very poisonous substance, 

 is present in mature and old specimens of HelveUa 

 c'sciilenfa. but is entirelv absent in young and fresh. 

 Choline, a comparatively 

 harmless alkaloid which has 

 been isolated from several 

 species of toadstool, changes 

 on decay to the deadly 

 neurine, which resembles in 

 its action muscarine, the 

 poisonous principle of the 

 Scarlet Fly Cap. 



Some of the toxic sub- 

 stances are volatile, others 

 are destroyed by heat and 

 most are soluble in water, 

 especially if acidulated or 

 containing salt. Frederic 

 Geraud gives a recipe for 

 preparing every kind of 

 toadstool, even the most 

 poisonous, for the table. 

 He has himself repeatedly 

 tried it and proved it to be 

 effective. The toadstools are 

 cut up into small pieces and 

 steeped in water to which 

 \inegar or salt has been added, 

 for at least two hours. They 

 are then washed thoroughly 

 and boiled for half an hour, 

 washed again, and may then be prepared as desired. 

 It is wonderful what extraordinary things some 

 people will trv to eat. 



The amount of a poisonous toadstool that is 

 required to give rise to s\mptoms of poisoning of 

 course varies with the species taken; for some are 

 much more poisonous than others. But there are 

 also marked differences in susceptibility in different 

 individuals. \\'here several people have partaken of 

 the deadly dish, and are consequently affected, the 

 severity of the symptoms in no way corresponds 

 with the amount of the toadstool eaten. 



It mav be useful here to enumerate the species of 

 whose poisonous properties there is definite evidence. 

 The Death-cup toadstool {Amanita phalloides. 

 Figure 491) is a harmless-looking fungus with 

 an earthy, and not unpleasant, smell. Its cap 

 is usuallv pale olive green in colour, rather slimy, 



Ri: 491. 

 uanita pliallout 



465 



