Bay rum tree vs Fly Agaric

Pimenta racemosa compared with Amanita muscaria

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Bay rum tree	Fly Agaric
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Fungi (Fungi)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Basidiomycota (Club Fungi)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Agaricomycetes (Mushrooms)
Order	Myrtales (Myrtales)	Agaricales (Gilled Mushrooms)
Family	Myrtaceae	Agaricaceae (Agarics)
Genus	Pimenta	Amanita (Amanitas)
Species	Pimenta racemosa	Amanita muscaria

Conservation Status

Bay rum tree

LC — Least Concern

Fly Agaric

LC — Least Concern

Trend: Stable →

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Bay rum tree	Fly Agaric
Diet	—	Decomposer
Average Lifespan	—	1 years
Average Length	—	20 cm
Average Weight	—	100 g

Habitat & Geographic Range

Bay rum tree

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, and tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests spanning the Afrotropic and Oceanian realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (Benin, Congo (DRC), Seychelles), Asia (India), North America (Bahamas, United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Fiji, Tonga), and South America (Colombia).

Fly Agaric

Habitat

Typically found in forest floors, decomposing wood, and soil ecosystems.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (4 countries), North America (United States), Oceania and the Pacific (New Zealand), and South America (Brazil, Chile, Colombia).

Bay rum tree

The Bay rum tree (Pimenta racemosa) is a species in the genus Pimenta. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, and tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests spanning the Afrotropic and Oceanian realms

Fly Agaric

Among the most iconic and recognizable fungi on Earth, fly agaric mushrooms display striking red caps with white flecked warts across boreal forests of the Northern Hemisphere. Despite their fairy-tale appearance, they contain potent psychoactive compounds including muscimol and ibotenic acid and are moderately toxic. They form critical mycorrhizal symbioses with birch, pine, and spruce trees, exchanging mineral nutrients for carbon and playing essential roles in boreal forest nutrient cycling.