3 ms·

Perhaps the key point of this news story: ’But unbeknownst to many, Ohio is home to some of the world’s deadliest mushrooms -- and they can look a whole lot li

Perhaps the key point of this news story: ’But unbeknownst to many, Ohio is home to some of the world’s deadliest mushrooms -- and they can look a whole lot like their edible cousins. A recent rash of nearly lethal poisonings have experts worried that mobile naturalist apps may be lulling otherwise cautious citizens into a false sense of security ‘

chasil 4y ago
The fungal species are not concentrated in Ohio, they are somewhat invasive as I understand it. "The death cap mushroom is an invasive species from Europe, now present on every continent except Antarctica. It became such a world traveler because humans spread the mushroom’s spores around like glitter at a kids’ glitter party... "...the death cap made a sudden appearance in 1938 and became increasingly common after that year." https://slate.com/technology/2014/02/most-dangerous-mushroom-death-cap-is-spreading-but-poisoning-can-be-treated.html https://slate.com/technology/2014/02/most-dangerous-mushroom...
photochemsyn 4y ago
I find it hard to imagine anyone relying on an app to determine whether or not a wild mushroom is edible or not. The poisonous mushrooms (particularly the widely distributed and complex Amanita types) have some of the most insidious biological toxins known, in particular alpha-amanitin, which has a really nasty delayed-action effect: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CE%91-Amanitin https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CE%91-Amanitin It's mode of action is so unique (binds RNA polymerase, so destroying liver and kidney protein synthesis and leading to widespread cell death) that it's used in molecular biology labs for the study of protein synthesis. Maybe some of the more obvious edible types (boletes, chantrelles, some others) are fairly easy to identify, but even there they have stomach-upset causing relatives. Anything even vaguely similar to Amanita should be viewed with caution (there are closely similar edible types, no thanks). A few good books with lots of pictures, close attention to things like spore prints, going with someone with a lot of experience, that's the best introduction.
- JKCalhoun 4y ago
  I couldn't write/ship an app like that.
  - 9wzYQbTYsAIc 4y ago
    Seems like the kind of app that you’d want to test in academia for many, many years before releasing to the public.

chasil 4y ago

The fungal species are not concentrated in Ohio, they are somewhat invasive as I understand it. "The death cap mushroom is an invasive species from Europe, now present on every continent except Antarctica. It became such a world traveler because humans spread the mushroom’s spores around like glitter at a kids’ glitter party... "...the death cap made a sudden appearance in 1938 and became increasingly common after that year." https://slate.com/technology/2014/02/most-dangerous-mushroom-death-cap-is-spreading-but-poisoning-can-be-treated.html https://slate.com/technology/2014/02/most-dangerous-mushroom...

photochemsyn 4y ago

I find it hard to imagine anyone relying on an app to determine whether or not a wild mushroom is edible or not. The poisonous mushrooms (particularly the widely distributed and complex Amanita types) have some of the most insidious biological toxins known, in particular alpha-amanitin, which has a really nasty delayed-action effect: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CE%91-Amanitin https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CE%91-Amanitin It's mode of action is so unique (binds RNA polymerase, so destroying liver and kidney protein synthesis and leading to widespread cell death) that it's used in molecular biology labs for the study of protein synthesis. Maybe some of the more obvious edible types (boletes, chantrelles, some others) are fairly easy to identify, but even there they have stomach-upset causing relatives. Anything even vaguely similar to Amanita should be viewed with caution (there are closely similar edible types, no thanks). A few good books with lots of pictures, close attention to things like spore prints, going with someone with a lot of experience, that's the best introduction.

JKCalhoun 4y ago
I couldn't write/ship an app like that.
- 9wzYQbTYsAIc 4y ago
  Seems like the kind of app that you’d want to test in academia for many, many years before releasing to the public.