PSA: Found poisonous mushrooms in my chicken pen

[Nif]

Great post, thanks for taking the time to post those great photos...very helpful! And helps us all become more proactive.
I have a mushroom identification book, think I will put that on the coffee table.

 

[PortageGirl]

How about THESE! If someone has a shroom book, could they look these up for me? Sorry for the hijack!

They're big roundish things, stem is not visible really. We get them almost every year in the fall, I just pitch them, but I was just wondering what they were.

 

[AmyBella]

That one looks like a giant puffball.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calvatia_gigantea

 

[PortageGirl]

Quote:
Oh my yes! you are so right! Heh, I know nothing much about mushrooms, except that the red-cap ones are usually poisonous. I was told by an Aunt years ago that these weren't poisonous, but I wasn't about to put it to the test! (she didn't know or care about names, she just said they wouldn't make ya sick, not if they were actually 'good' to eat either though. LOL )Wiki says they're edible, but I'm not tempted to try. Love mushrooms on pizza and in stews etc, but not about to try the backyard kind!

 

[Nif]

According to my Audubon Mushroom book, there is a "False Caesar's Mushroom" that looks exactly like your photo, and the Fly Agaric's description is that it is "blood red", also the stalks are white and have these pronounced rings. That doesn't mean you should take any chances with mushrooms!
Here's something from my book:
"There are some rules of thumb that can be helpful to determine if a mushroom is poisonous or not:
1)do not eat any Amantina species and be especially careful in identifying Amanita look-alikes or any other white mushroom.
2)avoid any little brown mushrooms (LBM's) and large brown mushrooms, especially those with pinkish, brownish, purple-brown, or blackish gills
3)avoid false morels."

Amanitin, the poison is the Fly Agaric mushroom, is pretty deadly...for a person. I think it's best to avoid them all!
According to my book, the giant puff balls are choice for eating, but I would personally rather travel to the store to get my edible fungus!

 

[key west chick]

WOW! I live in Hall county and have those everywhere. Thanks for the heads up!

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

As I understand it, when you pick a mushroom (even to toss it in the trash, it leaves behind microscopic traces that can continue to develop--soon, or maybe not until next year. If you are getting a lot of mushrooms and toadstools, then you probably need to aerate the soil and treat with a fungicide (and keep the chickens away as fungicides are also dangerous to them).

 

[Jenski]

pixiechic, thanks so much for posting the fantastic pics. Very helpful!

Sonoran Silkies, thank you for the additional info.

 

[Lil Chickie Mama]

Wow, I never would have given a second glance at a mushroom. Eek. I don't think we have any where I live now, but we used to get little white ones in the grass all over our front and back yard. I don't even eat store-bought mushrooms except in pasta, but I'll be especially careful to look for them in my garden now. Thank you!

 

[pixiechic]

Nif, you are right. The mushrooms in my pic could be Amanita Parcivolvata, aka Flimsy Veil or False Caesar's, which also grows here in the southeast. However, this mushroom is listed as poisonous in some places, others say it will just cause "severe gastric distress"...and this one also may be psychoactive. Either way, it can't be good chicken food.

Amanita Muscaria, the Fly Agaric mushroom, can come in a number of different colors, including blood-red, orange, yellow, and beige.