Gemmed Amanita vs Fly Agaric
Amanita gemmata and Amanita muscaria are confused for one another often enough to be worth putting next to each other.
Yellow-capped Amanita with variable and unpredictable toxin content — treated as poisonous everywhere.
The storybook red-and-white mushroom. Rarely fatal, but ibotenic acid and muscimol cause delirium, nausea and seizures.
Side by side
| Amanita gemmata | Amanita muscaria | |
|---|---|---|
| In this game | Poisonous | Poisonous |
| Habitat | Sandy soil under conifers and broadleaves, often on heath. | Under birch, pine and spruce, almost anywhere they grow. |
| Season | Summer to autumn. | Late summer to early winter. |
| Spore print | White. | White. |
This comparison cannot make a mushroom safe to eat. It sets out the few characteristics this game records, in general terms, for two species that vary by region, age and growing conditions. Real specimens overlap in ways no table and no photograph can separate, and the deadly one here is deadly in a single meal. Ask a qualified local expert, every time.
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Amanita gemmata is also confused with Panther Cap.
Amanita muscaria is also confused with Panther Cap.
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