365Caws is now in its 14th year of publication, and was originally intended to end after 365 days. It has sometimes been difficult for me to find new material, particularly during the winter months, but now as I enter my own twilight years, I cannot guarantee that I will be able to provide daily posts. It is my hope that along the way I may have inspired someone to a greater curiosity about the natural world. If so, I can rest, content in the knowledge that my work here has been done.
Wednesday, September 16, 2015
Ramaria
Day 338: Would-be mushroom hunters be warned: while many wild fungi are edible, it often takes chemical testing or microscopic examination of the spores to differentiate one species from another. For example, I know that this is a Ramaria, i.e., one of the Coral fungi often found around Mount Rainier and elsewhere in the forests of the Pacific Northwest. However, it could be R. botrytis, R. subbotrytis, R. formosa or even an aged specimen of R. araiospora, now faded to pink. Your narrator lacks the expertise to tell them apart, and with mushrooms, unless you are "105%" certain of a species identification, erring on the side of caution is mandatory. Many of the Coral fungi contain toxins, and while some people may not react to them, others may respond with mild to severe symptoms of mushroom poisoning. In other words, if you aren't positive of a species, do NOT eat it.
Just as a reminder, per 36 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 2.1 with respect to Mount Rainier National Park, "Edible fungi (mushrooms) - collection of the above is for personal consumption and shall be no more than one (1) gallon per person, per day."
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