Mushroom hunting can be a delightful experience, and immensely rewarding. But it doesn't tolerate fools .
Many poisonous mushrooms look just like the most delicious edible ones - to the inexperienced eye.
Rarely, these may even end up in gourmet shops and supermarkets, sold by pickers who don't know what they're doing. The Food and Drug Administration did a study in 1993 and found 9 toxic samples out of 42 morels purchased from shops. There are no general rules for spotting the dangerous caps. You get to know mushrooms in the same way you get to know people - by learning to recognize individuals. Don't try to learn it all from books.