Amanita is a genus of mushroom-forming fungi. It includes the species behind most fatal mushroom poisonings: the clinical reference StatPearls names the death cap, Amanita phalloides, as the species associated with the most fatalities and lists destroying angels such as Amanita bisporigera among amatoxin carriers (Horowitz and Moss).
The genus also includes the fly agaric, Amanita muscaria, which causes what a 2014 review calls an inebriating syndrome from ibotenic acid and muscimol, not psilocybin (Graeme, 2014). Some reviews still list Amanita in totals of “psychedelic” mushrooms, which shows how loosely that word is used (Strauss et al., 2022).
For Canada, GBIF holds records of Amanita bisporigera across several provinces (GBIF), while the journal found no modern Ontario observation of the death cap. A medical review notes that people looking for hallucinogenic mushrooms sometimes eat toxic ones by mistake, and amatoxin symptoms are often delayed. If someone may have eaten a wild mushroom, contact the Ontario Poison Centre (1-800-268-9017) at once, or call 911.
Sources
- Horowitz and Moss, StatPearls: Amatoxin mushroom toxicity
- Graeme, 2014, Journal of Medical Toxicology
- Strauss et al., 2022, Frontiers in Forests and Global Change
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