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Revision as of 19:51, 20 August 2003 by Rei (talk | contribs) (More info)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)The term mushroom usually refers to the aboveground fruiting body (spore-producing structure) of fungi with a shaft and a cap, and in extension, refering to the entire fungi of such appearance, but is also used to refer to many visible fungi in general.
Crinipellis perniciosa mushroom thumbnail
larger Crinipellis perniciosa
mushroom image
Spores released from the fan-shaped basidiocarp of
this inch-wide Crinipellis perniciosa mushroom can
infect cacao trees and drastically reduce yields
of the beans from which cocoa and chocolate products
are made.
Mushrooms are used extensively in cooking many cuisines. However, many mushrooms are poisonous, often resembling edible varieties, and eating them can be fatal. Picking your own wild mushrooms is extremely risky - far riskier than gathering edible plants - and a practice not to be undertaken by amateurs. This is due to the fact that, while there are only about 400,000 species of plants worldwide, there are an estimated 1.5 million mushroom species. Further complicating this is the lower degree of variety in easily identifiable traits between mushroom species. Mushrooms and other fungi are studied by mycologists.
The main types of mushrooms are agarics, boletes, Chanterelles, tooth fungi, polypores, puffballs, jelly fungi, coral fungi, bracket fungi, and cup fungi. "True mushrooms" are classified as Basidiomycota.
Psilocybin mushrooms possess hallucinogenic properties and are commonly known as "'shrooms". A number of other mushrooms are eaten for their psychoactive effects, such as Fly Agaric.
Currently, many species of mushrooms and fungi utilized as folk medicines for thousands of years are under intense study by ethnobotanists and medical researchers. Maitake, shiitake, and reishi varieties are prominent among those being researched for their anti-cancer, anti-viral, and/or immunity-enhancement properties.
A nuclear weapon when detonated produces a mushroom cloud, so named because of its shape.