CabAug 5, 2023
Boost please British folk. Woods here are FULL of death caps. Amanita phalloides. In decades of picking I have never seen as many as here on Cambridge today. It not even usually common here. It's brutally poisonous, please share a warning to avoid it #mushtodon #fungi #mushrooms
Show threadMarkAug 7, 2023
@cabd
Case in point:
"Daughter-in-law served poisonous mushroom meal that killed three, Victoria Police believe
Police say those who fell ill displayed symptoms of eating death cap mushrooms, but that had not been confirmed."
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-08-07/victoria-mushroom-deaths-gippsland-korumburra-leongatha/102696100
Victorian mushroom deaths under investigation as Korumburra mourns 'pillars' of community

A community in Victoria's east mourns the loss of three people as police and the health department continue to investigate suspected fatal mushroom poisoning.

ABC News
Show threadCabAug 7, 2023
@zl2tod Rare, but it happens. Most often here in the UK it's folk from China, mistaking them for rice straw mushrooms. Not exclusively an immigrant problem by any means, but last time we had a big year for death caps that really was apparent.
Show threadMarkAug 7, 2023
@cabd
then there's this:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/opinion/300882307/siouxsie-wiles-promising-signs-in-dealing-with-mushroom-poisoning
Siouxsie Wiles: Promising signs in dealing with mushroom poisoning

OPINION: There’s a good reason the fungus Amanita phalloides is called the death cap mushroom. It irreversibly damages the liver, killing about nine out of every ten people who die from eating poisonous mushrooms.

Stuff
Show threadCabAug 7, 2023
@zl2tod yeah, I've seen that. It's interesting, and might lead to a treatment that saves lives if a cluster of poisonings is found. Trouble is the damage is usually so severe by the time a source is found that it's too late.
Show threadMark
@cabd
Another report:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/300945429/lethal-meal-i-nearly-died-after-eating-a-killer-mushroom-for-dinner
Lethal meal: I nearly died after eating a killer mushroom for dinner

Her fish, veges and mushroom tasted delicious, but it could have been the last supper for Hamilton's Anna Whitehead.

Stuff
Aug 8, 2023 at 12:56amWeb