What a mushroom leaves behind

Mycology Department Lecture 🍄

What a mushroom leaves behind

The biodiversity and chemical ecology of native and invasive Amanita Phalloides

Cecelia K Stokes

2025.10.22 16:30

October  22 2025 4:30 pm 

Tudástár, Szeged 6726, Boldogasszony sgt. 6. II. emelet

Why are certain mushrooms so poisonous? The death cap produces a diversity of toxins (or chemistry), and while these toxins may have an essential role in protecting spores, their ecological functions remain mysterious. We’ve found the native European death caps are home to different invertebrate communities compared to other Amanita, and we hypothesize this pattern is influenced by the mushroom’s chemical profile. We will also investigate the invasive death caps' escape from potential "enemies" in the United States and explore mechanisms behind successful invasions of mushrooms into new habitats.