Russula emetica, commonly known as the sickener, emetic Russula, or vomiting Russula, is a basidiomycete mushroom, and the type species of the genus Russula. It has a red, convex to flat cap up to 8.5 cm (3.3 in) in diameter, with a cuticle that can be peeled off almost to the centre. The gills are white to pale cream, and closely spaced. A smooth white stem measures up to 10.5 cm (4.1 in) long and 2.4 cm (0.9 in) thick. First described in 1774, the mushroom has a wide distribution in the Northern Hemisphere, where it grows on the ground in damp woodlands in a mycorrhizal association with conifers, especially pine. The mushroom's common names refer to the gastrointestinal distress they cause when consumed raw. The flesh is extremely peppery, but this offensive taste, along with its toxicity, can be removed by parboiling or pickling. Although it used to be widely eaten in Russia and eastern European countries, it is generally not recommended for consumption. There are many similar Russula species that have a red cap with white stem and gills, some of which can be reliably distinguished from R. emetica only by microscopic characteristics.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russula_emetica
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1660:
At London's Gresham College, Robert Boyle, John Wilkins, Christopher Wren and other leading scientists founded a learned society now known as the Royal Society (coat of arms pictured). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Society
1920:
Thirty-six local Irish Republican Army volunteers killed seventeen members of the Auxiliary Division of the Royal Irish Constabulary, marking a turning point in the Irish War of Independence. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kilmichael_Ambush
1971:
Fred Quilt, a leader of the Tsilhqot'in First Nation, was severely beaten by Royal Canadian Mounted Police constables. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Quilt_inquiry
1979:
Air New Zealand Flight 901 crashed into Antarctica's Mount Erebus, killing all 257 people on board. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_New_Zealand_Flight_901
2002:
Suicide bombers blew up an Israeli-owned hotel in Mombasa, Kenya, but their colleagues failed in their attempt to bring down an Arkia Israel Airlines charter flight with surface-to-air-missiles. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002_Mombasa_attacks
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
ohnosecond: (humorous) The fraction of time between making a mistake and realizing it. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ohnosecond
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
We are the light inside light that fuses into the atoms of our bodies; we are the fire that whirls across the stellar deeps and dances all things into being. --David Zindell https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/David_Zindell
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