AMANITA VIROSA (Fr.) Bertillon

Cap
Caps of the Destroying Angel are 5 to 10cm in diameter, pure white, and without any marginal striations. The cap is initially egg-shaped and then campanulate (bell shaped) or occasionally almost flat but with a broad umbo, and is often tilted on the stipe.

Although some young caps carry white remains of the universal veil, they soon wash off in wet weather and are rarely seen on mature caps.

Gills
Amanita virosa gills are white, free and crowded.

Stem
Stems of Destroying Angels are 9 to 15cm tall, 0.6 to 2cm in diameter, and often slightly curved; pure white and fibrous with an ungrooved, fragile ring high up on the stipe.
The large, sack-like volva is usually buried deep in the soil.

Spores
Spherical or subglobose, 7-8μm in diameter.

Spore print
White.

Odour/taste
Mature specimens have a faint sickly and unpleasant odour (easily missed, especially in the outdoors on breezy days). Because this mushroom is deadly poisonous it must not be tasted.

Season
August to November in Britain.

Occurrence
Rare in southern Britain, infrequent in Scotland, Amanita virosa is usually found growing either singly or in small groups. The Destroying Angel is much more common in Scandinavia and most other northern European countries, where it fruits from late July until the first heavy frosts..

Similar species
Amanita citrina var. alba usually retains velar fragments on the cap; it has the sharp smell of new potatoes rather than a sweet sickly odour.
Young caps of Amanita virosa could be collected by accident when gathering edible Agaricus species such as Agaricus silvicola, the Wood Mushroom; gills of Amanita virosa are pure white, whereas the Agaricus species have gills that are initially pink and later turn brown.