=Amanita phalloides= Fr. =Deadly Poisonous.=--The _Amanita phalloides_ and its various forms, or closely related species, are the most dangerous of the poisonous mushrooms. For this reason the _A. phalloides_ is known as the _deadly agaric_, or _deadly amanita_. The plant is very variable in color, the forms being pure white, or yellowish, green, or olive to umber. Variations also occur in the way in which the volva ruptures, as well as in the surface characters of the stem, and thus it is often a difficult matter to determine whether all these forms represent a single variable species or whether there are several species, and if so, what are the limits of these species. Whether these are recognized as different forms of one species or as different species, they are all very poisonous. The plant usually occurs in woods or along the borders of woods. It does, however, sometimes occur in lawns. It varies from 6--20 cm. high, the cap from 3--10 cm. broad, and the stem 6--10 mm. in thickness. [Illustration: FIGURE 55.--Amanita phalloides, white form, showing cap, stem, ring, and cup-like volva with a free, prominent limb (natural size).] The =pileus= is fleshy, viscid or slimy when moist, smooth, that is, not striate, orbicular to bell-shaped, convex and finally expanded, and in old specimens more or less depressed by the elevation of the margin. The cap is often free from any remnants of the volva, while in other cases portions of the volva or outer veil appear on the surface of the cap in rather broad patches, or it may be broken up into a number of smaller ones quite evenly distributed over the surface of the cap. The presence or absence of these scales on the cap depends entirely on the way in which the volva ruptures. When there is a clean rupture at the apex the pileus is free from scales, but if portions of the apex of the volva are torn away they are apt to remain on the cap. [Illustration: PLATE 14, FIGURE 56.--Amanita phalloides, brownish, umber, or olive-brown form (natural size). Caps brownish or whitish, and streaked with brown, scales white, gills and stem white, stem slowly turning dull brown where bruised. Copyright.]