DEADLY fungus is spreading in Britain amid a torrent of wet weather.
Death Cap mushrooms, dubbed “silent assassins” by the Woodland Trust, are popping up across the country, thriving in the gloomy conditions following floods and thunderstorms.
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The poisonous fungus grows up to 15cm across and 15cm tall, with a domed or white cap and an off-white stem.
“Although it looks fairly inoffensive and similar to a number of edible mushrooms, it is deadly poisonous,” the Woodland Trust warns.
Now a surge in fungi growth is being reported across Britain amid growing fears over the Death Cap mushrooms, according to the Daily Star.
The mushroom is fairly common in most parts of Britain, Ireland and mainland Europe, and is often found under oak and beech.
Death Caps contain the poison amanitin and are responsible for 90% of deaths by fungus.
Half a cap or even less is enough to kill a person.
Three people in Jersey – including a mum and son – were poisoned on September 15 after eating death cap mushrooms.
They mistook the deadly fungus for edible mushrooms.
Fungi expert Charlotte Shenkin told the BBC: “It’s essential to be aware of the real and potentially deadly risks of eating wild fungi without knowledge and caution.”
Toadstools are now thriving in the soggy conditions following days of wet weather.
Andy Overall, who write about fungi, posted on X: “I’ve never seen so many mushrooms in East Sussex, as fungi responds to the rain and relatively warm temperatures.”
How to spot a poisonous death cap mushroom
The death cap is a large fungus growing up to 15cm across and 15cm tall with a domed or white cap – depending on age – on an off-white stem.
While it looks similar to edible mushrooms, it is deadly poisonous.
The fruitbody consists of a shiny olive-yellow to greenish-bronze cap, 5–15cm in diameter.
It is dome-shaped at first and flattening as it matures, darker in the middle with faint radiating fibres giving it a streaked appearance.
It smells sickly sweet and rancid when old, though at the button stage is virtually odourless.
Underneath the cap, the gills are broad and free, pure white turning cream or even slightly pink as they age.
The spores are smooth and elliptical in shape, with a white spore print.
The stem is off-white, 7–15cm high with a floppy ring.
It is swollen at the base and sits in a bag, or volva.
Source: Woodland Trust
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