ColorChallenge Monday: Red Fly Agaric Mushrooms, Stanton Moor, UK

There's nothing more magical looking than a group of Fly Agaric mushrooms in the woods!

They appear to be fairy houses and at any moment you expect to see pixies and elves around them.

This photo was taken on Stanton Moor, an upland area in the Peak District National Park, close to the villages of Birchover and Stanton-in-Peak. It is well known for its megaliths; in particular the Nine Ladies stone circle, and for its natural, wind-eroded sandstone pillars, including the Cork Stone

Here's a few mushroom facts from Wikipedia:

Amanita muscaria, commonly known as the fly agaric or fly amanita, is classified as poisonous, however reports of human deaths resulting from its ingestion are extremely rare. After parboiling—which weakens its toxicity and breaks down the mushroom's psychoactive substances—it is eaten in parts of Europe, Asia, and North America.

Amanita muscaria is noted for its hallucinogenic properties, with its main psychoactive constituent being the compound muscimol. The mushroom was used as an intoxicant and entheogen by the peoples of Siberia, and has a religious significance in these cultures.

There has been much speculation on possible traditional use of this mushroom as an intoxicant in other places such as the Middle East, Eurasia, North America, and Scandinavia.

All photos taken by me unless otherwise cited.

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Until the next post...

Nikki the MaskedBlogger xx