crippa died a week past at dona cruz state hospital , seven days after he ate a heaping meal of the edible fungus ocreata mushrooms , said his wife , joan crippa . noted as " death angel " for its ice - white look , the mushroom has deadly toxins that worked their course through crippa ' s blood , sickening him and eventually driving his blood to fail . family members had often caution crippa against tolerating in his passion for hunting wild mushrooms , an act he learned from his italian immigrant parents , his wife added .
Crippa's wife, Joan, was an Italian immigrant.