Cardboard Palm vs Fly Agaric

Zamia furfuracea compared with Amanita muscaria

Key Differences

Cardboard Palm is Endangered while Fly Agaric is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Cardboard Palm	Fly Agaric
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Fungi (Fungi)
Phylum	Tracheophyta	Basidiomycota (Club Fungi)
Class	Cycadopsida (Cycadopsida)	Agaricomycetes (Mushrooms)
Order	Cycadales (Cycadales)	Agaricales (Gilled Mushrooms)
Family	Zamiaceae	Agaricaceae (Agarics)
Genus	Zamia	Amanita (Amanitas)
Species	Zamia furfuracea	Amanita muscaria

Conservation Status

Cardboard Palm

EN — Endangered

Fly Agaric

LC — Least Concern

Trend: Stable →

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Cardboard Palm	Fly Agaric
Diet	—	Decomposer
Average Lifespan	—	1 years
Average Length	—	20 cm
Average Weight	—	100 g

Habitat & Geographic Range

Cardboard Palm

Habitat

Inhabits tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests and deserts and xeric shrublands within the Afrotropic biogeographic realm.

Range

Distributed across Brazil, India, Seychelles, and United States. Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

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).

Cardboard Palm

The Cardboard Palm (Zamia furfuracea) is a species in the genus Zamia. It is currently classified as Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List. Inhabits tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests and deserts and xeric shrublands within the Afrotropic biogeographic realm.

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.