Fly agaric — hoodie

Fly agaric

Amanita muscaria L.

This is an autumn ornament of Polish forests. Sometimes the fruiting bodies occur singly, but much more often they appear in groups of many, creating a truly fairy-tale atmosphere. We can find the red fly agaric near birches, aspen oaks, as well as firs, pines or spruces, as it is a mycorrhizal fungus, symbiotically related to these types of trees. Although it is not an edible species, mushroom hunters value it not only for its charming appearance. It is believed to herald a rash of penny buns, which are usually found on similar sites as the fly agaric.

Amanita muscaria is distinguished from other forest mushrooms by its unusual appearance. The distinctive feature is a blood-red cap covered with white dots. The dots are actually remnants of the membranous covering protecting the young fruiting body of the mushroom, which, as the individual grows, breaks into many small fragments and remains on the cap. Young fruiting bodies are spherical in shape, with no visible stem. During development, the stem elongates and the cap changes shape from spherical to more flattened.