365 Urban Species. #205: The Sickener

[urbpan]

Photos by cottonmanifesto. Location: Under 150 year old red oaks in the Riverway, Boston and Brookline.

Urban species #205: The Sickener Russula emetica

This mushroom belongs to a group of colorful fruiting bodies of mycorrhizal fungi collectively known as Russulas. These mushrooms are easy to identify to the genus level, but very difficult to identify to species. The genus is characterized by white, chalky flesh in the stalk and gills. Their caps are usually colorful, some species purple, some green, many reddish. One of the red species is well enough known to have a common name: the sickener. Russulas are controversial among wild mushroom-eaters--some consider all of them to be poisonous, some consider all of them edible, except one. The sickener causes the eater to vomit--a merciful fate considering the alternatives some other mushrooms offer. The sickener is known to occur in Europe, but it may or may not be one of the red-capped Russulas in North America. Further molecular studies will tell us which species are unique to each continent, and which may occur worldwide.

Russulas are common mushrooms in New England woods. Because they are mycorrhizal, they occur only in areas where trees (usually oaks) have had their roots in the soil for many years. Urban trees are short-lived creatures, scraping out a living in polluted, compacted, acid soils, and mycorrhizal mushrooms are rare in cities. However, great city parks, with acres of wilderness area, can support surprising amounts of biodiversity. Russulas are favored food items of gray squirrels, and slugs--presumably these animals don't suffer the same effects that humans do when eating the sickener.

Comments

[mellawyrden.livejournal.com]

I just saw a Sickener growing under an oak tree in the park today! I didn't know what it was.. but I wished I had my camera so I could ask about it. Psychic sickener experience, wow!

That squirrel is adorable. Tough little creatures, squirrels

[ritaxis.livejournal.com]

Their close relatives, the lactarius genus, include some delicious things (not l.deliciosa which is only okay): maybe that's why there's a rumor of palatable russulas.

I tried to take pictures of the squirrel that lives in my almond tree, but it cursed me and ran around the tree. It curses me all the time anyway.

Have you noticed how rude urban wildlife tends to be?

[droserary.livejournal.com]

Have you noticed how rude urban wildlife tends to be?

Preaching to the choir! Or at least just to someone who was once injured by a chipmunk.

[bezigebij.livejournal.com]

Russulas are some of the first mushrooms I became acquainted with in a mushroom identification obsessive past (college days...). Their pretty colors still make me smile, though I see them less in these parts than in the N.E. U.S.

What was going on here?

[momomom.livejournal.com]

The other day I saw a bunch of mushrooms in the woods, some yellow, some white to pink with reddish bumpy dots. They ALL had one dime-sized bite out of them!

Re: What was going on here?

[urbpan.livejournal.com]

Slugs, squirrels, mice, chipmunks, millipedes, beetles, and fungus gnats are all good possibilities. I'd suspect a rodent was doing a taste test.

Re: What was going on here?

[(Anonymous)]

is this a sickener?[IMG]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f336/Firefighter89/DCFC0083.jpg[/IMG]

Re: What was going on here?

[(Anonymous)]

[IMG]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f336/Firefighter89/DCFC0083.jpg[/IMG]

Re: What was going on here?

[(Anonymous)]

[IMG]http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f336/Firefighter89/DCFC0083.jpg[/IMG]

Re: What was going on here?

[urbpan.livejournal.com]

Livejournal's html works like this:

Re: What was going on here?

[urbpan.livejournal.com]

Now that I can see it (you need [less than]img src="address"[greater than])
Yes, it certainly could be. See my text above for why I'm being ambiguous. That mushroom has as good a chance of being a sickener as the mushroom in my photograph.