Ridley's Funky Fungi (GME094)

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The stench of the devil’s fingers attracts insects, who they rely on to spread their spores so they can reproduce. Like most mushrooms, they are saprobic and decompose dead organic matter to create energy for themselves. The fungi break down dead plant matter into fuel for new trees and plant life to grow, so they are vital to the life cycle of forests. The artwork on the cards is so adorable and full of personality and character; each mushroom’s design and name are based on real-life types of fungi (except the original wild card). For example, the “Death Cap” action card has a skull on its cap to signify how dangerous it is for other players, and the “Porcini” card portrays a mushroom with cool shades, standing as a bodyguard for a smaller mushroom, since this card type protects mushrooms in a player’s collection in the game. Brimming with fascinating facts and interesting STEM activities, Funky Fungi engages curious readers. The lively text and vivid illustrations make this book a valuable resource for anyone who wants to explore the wonderful world of fungi.” —Gail Jarrow, author of Blood and Germs

Turkey tail contains two polysaccharopeptides that have impressive immune-boosting properties – Krestin or Polysaccharide-K (PSK) and Polysaccharide Peptide (PSP) ( 1 3). Studies show that PSP increases monocytes, types of white blood cells that are key immune-system defenders ( 1 4). In addition, PSK activates macrophages, or specialized white blood cells that protect your body from harmful, invading microbes ( 1 5). Due to their natural ability to strengthen the immune system, PSK and PSP are approved drugs in Japan and China and are often given to patients with weakened immune systems ( 1 6). American composer, John Cage, was not only one of the most influential composers of the 20th century, but he was also a great mushroom lover. Sekhon BK;Sze DM;Chan WK;Fan K;Li GQ;Moore DE;Roubin RH; (2012, November 15). PSP activates monocytes in resting human peripheral blood mononuclear cells: immunomodulatory implications for cancer treatment. Food chemistry. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23497877/. The book contains a lot of photographs, some drawings and other illustrations, and several text boxes about specific species of fungi.Jayachandran, M., Xiao, J., & Xu, B. (2017, September 8). A Critical Review on Health Promoting Benefits of Edible Mushrooms through Gut Microbiota. International journal of molecular sciences. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5618583/.

This book comes with some warnings, so handle with care! The first warning is about interacting with any fungus you might find. "It could be poisonous." So do not touch fungi with your bare hands, don't eat them, and don't even smell them. Kulshreshtha, S., Mathur, N., & Bhatnagar, P. (2014, April 1). Mushroom as a product and their role in mycoremediation. AMB Express. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4052754/. Cage actually had a very close call because of his favourite fungi, when one foraging trip landed him in hospital. He had accidentally ingested poisonous hellebore, which he had mistaken for a skunk cabbage. Had the composer not been treated within 15 minutes of his hospital admission, he would have died. One very minor issue I noticed in the instructions is a typo in one of the paragraphs, and I also noticed that one of the action cards has a three-point icon, when only cluster cards should have these icons. Who’s It For It may look like a lobster’s tail, but does it taste like it? #7 Lobster Mushroom ( Hypomyces Lactifluorum) Where does this weird mushroom grow?

This is one of those weird mushrooms that looks like it crawled out of a nightmare. The young fruiting body “bleeds” a bright red sap that can look quite disturbing. As it ages, it slowly loses its ability to produce sap and develops a greyish-brown color. What useful properties does this mushroom have? I was born in Canada, and grew up around Vancouver and the mountains of British Columbia. My love of pristine environments led me to New Zealand and eventually to the mountains, lakes and rivers of the central North Island which is home. My family’s heritage is here, and it’s from here that Korio traverses the planet.

The guidebook further informed me they are said to be occasional but where they do occur can be locally abundant and are highly prized as an edible delicacy, being found in the leaf litter of mainly beechwoods from late summer to late autumn. I resolved to return to the wood and look at them with the respect and enthusiasm that I had previously denied them, that is if I could remember where they had been in the wood. Won, S. Y., & Park, E. H. (2005). Anti-inflammatory and related pharmacological activities of cultured mycelia and fruiting bodies of Cordyceps militaris. Journal of ethnopharmacology, 96(3), 555–561. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2004.10.009the Vegetable Caterpillar Fungus) is a type of cordycep that turns native ghost moth caterpillars into zombies if the spores are eaten.