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Mushrooms

Red coral mushroom

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Red coral mushroom, Ramaria araiospora, is a wild coral fungus collected and sold in Guatemala. Coral fungi have toxic look-alikes, so identification needs a specialist.

Two whole red coral mushroom clumps and two lengthwise halves showing pale flesh rest on a warm ivory surface.

What it is

Red coral mushroom is the common name the catalogue gives to Ramaria araiospora, a coral fungus that grows on the forest floor and forms branching, coral-like fruiting bodies. Coral fungi are a large genus with many species that look alike, and the catalogue notes that the species name needs confirmation against current taxonomy.

The catalogue records the scientific name as a research label rather than a validated accepted name.

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Where it is sold and eaten

A 2019 ethnomycological study of the Kaqchikel Maya of the Guatemalan Highlands, based on four years of market visits and interviews, lists Ramaria araiospora among the wild mushrooms sold at the municipal market of San Juan Sacatepequez. The market is supplied by foraging in the surrounding pine-oak forests, and mushroom selling there is carried out by women.

Ramaria species are sold in portions, usually mixed with other species. The study's local classification records the species as edible, with the local name patitas de pajaro, and records barter and trade as its use.

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Safety

The sources found for this page establish that the species is sold and eaten locally, and they establish a local classification as edible. They do not establish a toxicity study, a safe preparation, or a safety assessment for the species.

Ramaria has toxic look-alikes, and the catalogue records gastrointestinal reactions as a concern for coral fungi. Identification from appearance alone is not reliable, and a local edible label is not a safety verdict.

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Notes and gaps

The sources do not describe the preparation of this species, its season, or its prices. Those points are left open.

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Places

Guatemala

Documented use · Country evidence

Recorded in the municipal market of San Juan Sacatepequez, in the Kaqchikel Maya highlands.

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