so every book I've looked at concerning amanitas says they are poisonous. But I've heard of some tribes that eat them to hallucinate. so are they only poisonous if you eat to many? or is the hallucination deal just a farce? Thanks for any input. JP
Hallucinations are the effect of the poison in A. muscaria (probably among other effects as well). Different species in the Amanitas can be deadly (I'm guessing that the Death Angel is fatal). Amanita muscaria grows everywhere around my area (sub arctic boreal forest) I don't think many people attempt to consume them. Shaun
Have a read through Tom Volk's take on it: Amanita muscaria Note that Tom Volk mentions that some amanitas are deadly poisonous, and easily mistaken for A. muscaria... This is also worth a read: Hallucinogenic Mushrooms and Santa Claus
I've ingested a few dozen cooked, dried and raw A. muscarias within a year's time without any noticeable harm. They taste good (and are psychoactive). I think that, understandably, authors of field guides are quite conservative, which can be misleading. David Arora negatively reports on the flavor or texture of fungi that I think taste quite good (he's far too finicky), but when one reads Arora's admonishments one can mistake his not liking the taste of some species with the species in question being poisonous. storm