Deadly mushroom species found in East Vancouver

A deadly species of fungi was spotted in Vancouver this week.

City Coun. Pete Fry raised the alarm on social media Wednesday after finding amanita phalloides — or ‘death cap’ mushrooms — in East Vancouver.

Fry tells 1130 NewsRadio that the invasive species from Europe is responsible for roughly 90 per cent of mushroom deaths worldwide, noting an incident in 2016 in which a three-year-old boy died after eating a death cap in Victoria.

“They are a legitimate threat to people and pets, especially if they’re on the smaller side,” said Fry.

But he says his interest in fungi extends beyond protecting locals from deadly encounters. 

“This is a weird side hobby for me, and I’m by no means a mycologist,” said Fry, adding that it is worth being aware as death caps are becoming more prolific in the Pacific Northwest.

Fry says the mushrooms can be identified by their white stem and gills with a metallic-green cap, usually found under oak trees and hornbeams.

He says with the recent rain in Vancouver, they may pop up more frequently.

The BC Centre for Disease Control says if you come across a death cap, you should immediately report it to the provincial government. 

—With files from Michael Williams