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My dad has this mushroom growing on his land, in large quantities.

He is curious if these are poisonous to humans, as he is interested in cooking them. He commented that he has seen some that look to have been partially eaten by animals.

Zombo
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    The apparent eating of a wild plant by animals -- or even _observed_ eating -- should ***NEVER*** be taken as evidence of its safety for humans. First, the animal may have made a mistake and indeed have gotten sick or died later. Cattle poison themselves on hemlock, for example. Second, particular chemicals affect different species in varied ways. Notably, [birds have no sense of capsaicin being "hot"](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1857/are-birds-immune-to-hot-pepper-enabling-them-to-eat-vast-amounts-and-spread-the-seeds). – jscs Dec 14 '13 at 21:44
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    These mushrooms have an extremely narrow distribution in terms of growing; perhaps your local university extension has specific local information. It might be worth contacting them. – SAJ14SAJ Dec 15 '13 at 02:06
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    I am absolutely *not* one to stress food safety rules in home kitchens, and I violate the rules all the time to no ill effect. That said, I wouldn't touch a found wild mushroom with a 10 foot pole. No way, not even if I have reason to be sure I know what it is. Even experts occasionally get it wrong. – Jolenealaska Dec 15 '13 at 02:59
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    This question appears to be off-topic because it is about the edibility of specific mushrooms. Not about cooking. – BaffledCook Dec 15 '13 at 15:27
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    While it may be off-topic, isn't the best advice just to ask a trained mycologist to identify it for you? He will also be able to tell you whether it's safely identifiable. Some mushrooms have dangerous look-alikes, and some do not. – Eric Tressler Dec 19 '13 at 06:33

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I cannot find specific information about Urnula Geaster (devil's Cigar; Texas Star), however, almost all of the members of the Urnula family are inedible. I would hazard a guess that this variety is as well.

A Field Guide to Mushrooms

BigHandsome
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