Wow, Hugh, what great photos! Can you imagine what it
would be like with RAIN??! My favorites: the "witches
butter" covered with flies (what's up with that,
anyway?), the troop of what appears to be cordyceps
(did you dig any out?), and the enormous landscape
mushroom, next to the concrete and one of my
houseplants! Hope you brought me home one of those
cool t-shirts, too. Hmmmm, maybe we can import t's
from Costa Rica, and export 'em to Panama!

Speaking of an international community of mushroomers,
we have a new member from France, Larry Menard. He and
his wife Cathy formerly resided in Oakland, and he was
kind enough to show David and I many of his former
mushroom hotspots before he left the country. Gotta
love friends like that.

Onward and upward.
Debbie Viess

If anyone would like bigger copies of the costa rican mushrooms,
just write to me.
Phalluscybe

Well, I'm back from Costa Rica, a place that has more National Parks
than anywhere else on Earth. It is an awesome place and the people are
terrific. This is not Mexico. I kept thinking I was in Mexico, except
there was never anyone hounding me, looking for anyway to get my money.
I suggest you go before America screws them up too!
  I have posted a folder of photos on this site. There's a few.
Next time I want to go in October. Then I can see the turtles coming
onto the beach, as well as a whole different world.
  I burned 6.28 gigs while down there. After processing my photos, I
ended up with just over 3 gigs. One quarter of my 1208 pictures are of
creatures. It was the end of the dry season so there probably weren't
too many mushrooms to be found.
  This is what I found.

00 2006-04-00-Costa Rica

Hugh Smith
Who
Phalluscybe

----- Original Message -----

From: David Rust

To: BayAreaMushrooms@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Monday, May 01, 2006 3:58 PM

Subject: Re: [BayAreaMushrooms] Shroom shirts

I wonder if SOMA, FFSC and the MSSF might have a small portion of past years' inventory they'd be willing to donate.

Kitty & Creek Norris <cmnorris@...> wrote:

Many thanks in advance,  Debbie and David,  for your generosity!  This is indeed how it should be -  we are all in this together, whether we are here, or in another country. Such a small planet it truly is!

Kitty

Kitty & Creek Norris
Willits, CA
www.magneticgraffiti.com
www.iridiumradio.com

 

 

Many thanks in advance,  Debbie and David,  for your generosity!  This is indeed how it should be -  we are all in this together, whether we are here, or in another country. Such a small planet it truly is!

Kitty

Kitty & Creek Norris
Willits, CA
www.magneticgraffiti.com
www.iridiumradio.com

 

 

----- Original Message -----

From: debbie viess

To: BayAreaMushrooms@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Monday, May 01, 2006 2:28 PM

Subject: Re: [BayAreaMushrooms] Shroom shirts

I am sure that David and I can contribute to the
myco-themed T-shirt pile; our t-shirt drawers
overfloweth.

It's a generous idea, Kitty, in keeping with the BAMS
philosophy: many voices to make a chorus, and many
hands to help others follow along our path. Fungal fun
for everyone.

Debbie Viess

... I wonder if anyone in this group has
> extra T Shirts of any mycological type, club, etc.
> that are available for me to donate to the class. 
> I am getting a package together of books and stuff
> to send back, so any extra copies of field guides or
> other myco books are also welcome, no matter how dog
> eared or damp they may be. His efforts are all non
> profit, and depend on donations from the nature and
> conservation minded public.  He just received a
> prestigious conservation award for his work, so we
> are supporting someone who gets things done! If you
> can get any shirts or reference materials to me via
> any sorts of snail mail in Willits, I will get them
> the rest of the way to Panama.  My address is Kitty
> Norris 3881 Williams Ranch Rd Willits CA 95490
> Kitty
> Kitty & Creek Norris
> Willits, CA
> www.magneticgraffiti.com
> www.iridiumradio.com
>
>
> Life is not a journey to the grave with the
> intention of arriving safely in a pretty & well
> preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside,
> thoroughly used up, totally worn out, loudly
> proclaiming "WOW - What a Ride!"
>   ----- Original Message -----
>   From: Dorris Welch
>   To: BayAreaMushrooms@yahoogroups.com
>   Sent: Monday, May 01, 2006 1:19 PM
>   Subject: Re: [BayAreaMushrooms] hello
>
>
>   got it!
>
>   Dorris Welch
>   Interpretive Specialist
>   Oakland Museum of California
>   510-238-6641

I am sure that David and I can contribute to the
myco-themed T-shirt pile; our t-shirt drawers
overfloweth.

It's a generous idea, Kitty, in keeping with the BAMS
philosophy: many voices to make a chorus, and many
hands to help others follow along our path. Fungal fun
for everyone.

Debbie Viess

... I wonder if anyone in this group has
> extra T Shirts of any mycological type, club, etc.
> that are available for me to donate to the class.
> I am getting a package together of books and stuff
> to send back, so any extra copies of field guides or
> other myco books are also welcome, no matter how dog
> eared or damp they may be. His efforts are all non
> profit, and depend on donations from the nature and
> conservation minded public.  He just received a
> prestigious conservation award for his work, so we
> are supporting someone who gets things done! If you
> can get any shirts or reference materials to me via
> any sorts of snail mail in Willits, I will get them
> the rest of the way to Panama.  My address is Kitty
> Norris 3881 Williams Ranch Rd Willits CA 95490
> Kitty
> Kitty & Creek Norris
> Willits, CA
> www.magneticgraffiti.com
> www.iridiumradio.com
>
>
> Life is not a journey to the grave with the
> intention of arriving safely in a pretty & well
> preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside,
> thoroughly used up, totally worn out, loudly
> proclaiming "WOW - What a Ride!"
>   ----- Original Message -----
>   From: Dorris Welch
>   To: BayAreaMushrooms@yahoogroups.com
>   Sent: Monday, May 01, 2006 1:19 PM
>   Subject: Re: [BayAreaMushrooms] hello
>
>
>   got it!
>
>   Dorris Welch
>   Interpretive Specialist
>   Oakland Museum of California
>   510-238-6641

----- Original Message -----

From: Dorris Welch

To: BayAreaMushrooms@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Monday, May 01, 2006 1:19 PM

Subject: Re: [BayAreaMushrooms] hello

got it!

Dorris Welch
Interpretive Specialist
Oakland Museum of California
510-238-6641

got it!

Dorris Welch
Interpretive Specialist
Oakland Museum of California
510-238-6641

The article is online at: http://www.sfgate.com/
search for "mushrooms"
Debbie Johnson

----- Original Message -----

From: debbie viess

To: BayAreaMushrooms@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Monday, May 01, 2006 9:10 AM

Subject: [BayAreaMushrooms] hello

test

----- Original Message -----

From: debbie viess

To: BayAreaMushrooms@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Monday, May 01, 2006 9:10 AM

Subject: [BayAreaMushrooms] hello

test

test

----- Original Message -----

From: debbie viess

To: BayAreaMushrooms@yahoogroups.com

Cc: SOMA@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Saturday, April 29, 2006 10:20 AM

Subject: [BayAreaMushrooms] gyromitra vs the morels: g. wins!

Another example of life imitating art...while
attempting to gather some morels at the Berkeley Bowl
on Friday (somehow, driving to the mountains for one
morel wasn't all that appealing) I was confronted with
a morel dilemma...with a scant handful of exceptions,
most of the proffered morels were past their
expiration date...growing mold, or turning red, due to
bacterial contamination. Yum. The boxes of back-up
morels showed no improvement. Meanwhile, in a tray
directly above the morels, were fist-sized Gyromitra
gigas, in crisp and beautiful shape. What to do? Well,
I gave the gigas its due by allowing as how it won the
most palatable-appearing wild mushroom contest. But,
as they didn't fit into my appetizer concept (little
gorgonzola stuffed morels) I passed by the mushroom
bins altogether. Ironic for the gigas to win, tho,
considering both my fondness for fresh morels, and the
recent discussion about the merits of edibility of
gyromitra and morchella.

At long last, the local East Bay mushroom season
appears to be winding down. The few chanterelles
remaining in the field are looking rather peaked, and
the scattering of fleshy fungi that was apparent well
into April is finally gone. Even the mushrooms must be
breathing a sigh of relief that the rains have finally
abated; enough, already! It was a long, strange
mushroom season here in the flatlands. Once those
mountains of snow melt in the Sierra, I anticipate
another interesting flush at elevation; not just for
edibles like morels and spring boletes and coccora,
but for currently quiescent, strange and beautiful
fungal life-forms that have perhaps not graced the
mountains for a number of years. Due to dry
conditions, Dennis Desjardin's SFSU Sierra mushroom
class has had slim pickings for the past several
summer seasons, but this year may well be the
exception. BAMS will be leading a number of Sierra
trips this summer, so keep watching this space.

Debbie Viess

Another example of life imitating art...while
attempting to gather some morels at the Berkeley Bowl
on Friday (somehow, driving to the mountains for one
morel wasn't all that appealing) I was confronted with
a morel dilemma...with a scant handful of exceptions,
most of the proffered morels were past their
expiration date...growing mold, or turning red, due to
bacterial contamination. Yum. The boxes of back-up
morels showed no improvement. Meanwhile, in a tray
directly above the morels, were fist-sized Gyromitra
gigas, in crisp and beautiful shape. What to do? Well,
I gave the gigas its due by allowing as how it won the
most palatable-appearing wild mushroom contest. But,
as they didn't fit into my appetizer concept (little
gorgonzola stuffed morels) I passed by the mushroom
bins altogether. Ironic for the gigas to win, tho,
considering both my fondness for fresh morels, and the
recent discussion about the merits of edibility of
gyromitra and morchella.

At long last, the local East Bay mushroom season
appears to be winding down. The few chanterelles
remaining in the field are looking rather peaked, and
the scattering of fleshy fungi that was apparent well
into April is finally gone. Even the mushrooms must be
breathing a sigh of relief that the rains have finally
abated; enough, already! It was a long, strange
mushroom season here in the flatlands. Once those
mountains of snow melt in the Sierra, I anticipate
another interesting flush at elevation; not just for
edibles like morels and spring boletes and coccora,
but for currently quiescent, strange and beautiful
fungal life-forms that have perhaps not graced the
mountains for a number of years. Due to dry
conditions, Dennis Desjardin's SFSU Sierra mushroom
class has had slim pickings for the past several
summer seasons, but this year may well be the
exception. BAMS will be leading a number of Sierra
trips this summer, so keep watching this space.

Debbie Viess

Doing a bit of research, I discovered that three of
the family of five that were poisoned by mushrooms in
Sacramento showed liver damage, and that apparently
the mushrooms tested positive for amatoxins. So much
for finding them "in a field", and speculation that
they may have been bought. The story mentioned that
there was a language barrier, and the details of the
poisoning were hazy.

Moving on to the upcoming morel season, I discovered
an extremely well-written article on morel hunting in
The Twin Cities' "Pioneer Press". The Eastern hunting
conditions may differ from the West, but the basic
philosophy is the same: the challenge and joy of the
hunt.

To read the article, cut and paste the follwing url
into your browser.


http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/living/columnists/beth_gauper/14394178.\
htm

Debbie Viess

Mushrooms from a field? What mushroom is being
proposed to have caused poisonings? Agaricus barficus?
If it was an agricultural field, could it be a
poisoning from the uptake of agricultural chemicals by
a normally benign mushroom? More info, please!

Debbie Viess

--- David Rust <incredulis@...> wrote:

> In response to the recent poisoning case in
> Sacramento County, the California Department of
> Health Services has issued a warning about eating
> wild mushrooms.  From the San Jose Merc:
>
>
>
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/14424246.htm
>
>   All five who ate the mushrooms are recovering.

Just the apricot cup!

Dimitar Bojantchev wrote:
Hi Hugh,
these pictures are not allowed to participate in any photo contests! Ok?
D.

----- Original Message -----

From: phalluscybe

To: BayAreaMushrooms@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Sunday, April 23, 2006 6:37 PM

Subject: [BayAreaMushrooms] Costa Rica

Hi, Hugh Smith here.
Kanota, mae? Pura Vida!
I have just returned from a 17 day trip in Costa Rica.
I was there at the end of the dry season. It was also the end of
tourist season (Easter).
Although we did not get rained on, as prepared as we were, there were
mushrooms to be found. No amanitas, but I did find one Witches Butter
in the Cloud Forest. Dead Man's Fingers were abundant when they were
around at all. Lots of Ganoderma tsugae (?). A few coprinus, shelfs,
conchs, encrusting funguses, and one AWESOME apricot stalked cup. I'm
working the pictures now.
About 6 gigs, or about 1000 photos.
Many people, including our guides are very interested and informed of
their environment and the ecology, but I found only one person who had
a real interest in mushrooms. When I asked my favorite guide, Steve,
if there were many mushrooms in the jungle, he said there weren't very
many. So I said, "Like that one, and those, and those?" He said, "Hmmm".
So I think I sparked an interest. I'll be sending him a book soon.
All The Rain Promises And More. He said he had a small book once that
was about mushrooms, but doesn't know what happened to it.
The guide who WAS interested will be getting a copy of Mushrooms
Demystified.
I WILL be returning to Costa Rica!
Pura Vida! (Good Life)
Phalluscybe

Spread the love, Hugh!
Debbie Viess


So I think I sparked an interest. I'll be sending him
a book soon.
All The Rain Promises And More. He said he had a small
book once that
was about mushrooms, but doesn't know what happened to
it.
  The guide who WAS interested will be getting a copy
of Mushrooms
Demystified.
  I WILL be returning to Costa Rica!
Pura Vida! (Good Life)
Phalluscybe





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---------------------------------

Hi, Hugh Smith here.
Kanota, mae? Pura Vida!
I have just returned from a 17 day trip in Costa Rica.
I was there at the end of the dry season. It was also the end of
tourist season (Easter).
  Although we did not get rained on, as prepared as we were, there were
mushrooms to be found. No amanitas, but I did find one Witches Butter
in the Cloud Forest. Dead Man's Fingers were abundant when they were
around at all. Lots of Ganoderma tsugae (?). A few coprinus, shelfs,
conchs, encrusting funguses, and one AWESOME apricot stalked cup. I'm
working the pictures now.
About 6 gigs, or about 1000 photos.
  Many people, including our guides are very interested and informed of
their environment and the ecology, but I found only one person who had
a real interest in mushrooms. When I asked my favorite guide, Steve,
if there were many mushrooms in the jungle, he said there weren't very
many. So I said, "Like that one, and those, and those?" He said, "Hmmm".
So I think I sparked an interest. I'll be sending him a book soon.
All The Rain Promises And More. He said he had a small book once that
was about mushrooms, but doesn't know what happened to it.
  The guide who WAS interested will be getting a copy of Mushrooms
Demystified.
  I WILL be returning to Costa Rica!
Pura Vida! (Good Life)
Phalluscybe

There was a great turnout for Dr. Michael Beug's talk
to the Sonoma County Mycological Society this past
Thursday night. Michael is currently the head of the
North American Mycological Association's toxicology
committee. Aside from the usual amanita suspects, he
shared with us many interesting nuggets of information
gleaned from decades of data contained
within the NAMA North American Mushroom Poisoning
Registry.

Of particular interest to me:

*eating blackening russulas can be fatal(!)

*the darker the cap of an Amanita pantherina, the more
toxin contained within.

*there is no difference in the incidence of Gyromitra
esculenta poisonings across the continent, i.e., you
are just as likely to get ill from eating
G. esculenta in CA as you are in Michigan, and this is
no mere stomach ache: gyromitrins/MMH can cause liver
damage, cancer and death! So much for the myth of the
less toxic mountain forms...

*the spate of deaths caused by eating Pleurocybella
(Angel wings) in Japan several years ago occured only
within a population of people that already had
weakened kidney function, and who, in fact, were
already on dialysis. There was also an unusually heavy
fruiting of these mushrooms that year. Angel wings are
a very popular edible in Japan, and much greater
quantities than normal were consumed.

*orange-capped Leccinum species not only can cause
poisonings, but, in some cases, serious poisonings of
very long duration, with GI effects lasting from a
week to ten days! (As an interesting aside, Beug
mentioned to me that about a year ago, he had just
reassured one of his college classes that Leccinum
manzanitae, one of the orange-capped leccinums, was
perfectly safe to eat. When he returned home, he found
an email from me that told of my daughter
being poisoned by this very mushroom!)

*in 2003, morels were the most frequently reported
cause of mushroom poisoning(!).

*handling Suillus can cause dermatitis in susceptible
people.

*Amanita ocreata is the most toxic of the amatoxin
containing amanitas, with 100% of ingestors showing
liver damage, and 80% kidney failure.

*eating raw mushrooms of any kind blocks protein
uptake, a kind of "anti-nutrition".


Conclusions?

Cook all of your mushrooms well, and eschew raw ones
in your salads.

Don't eat Gyromitra esculenta, period.

Don't eat white amanitas (even though some of the
edible species can have white forms); too easy for
that one little mistake to be your last.

Don't pig-out on mushrooms. Less is more. Although
they are nutritious and flavorful when cooked, the
chitin and cellulose are indigestible, and many
mushrooms accumulate toxins from the environment. As
top chain predators, so do we.


Bon apetit!

Debbie Viess