Fly Agaric vs smooth heliotrope

Amanita muscaria compared with Heliotropium curassavicum

Key Differences

Fly Agaric is Least Concern while smooth heliotrope is Not Evaluated.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Fly Agaric	smooth heliotrope
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Basidiomycota (Club Fungi)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Agaricomycetes (Mushrooms)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order	Agaricales (Gilled Mushrooms)	Boraginales (Boraginales)
Family	Agaricaceae (Agarics)	Heliotropiaceae
Genus	Amanita (Amanitas)	Heliotropium
Species	Amanita muscaria	Heliotropium curassavicum

Conservation Status

Fly Agaric

LC — Least Concern

Trend: Stable →

smooth heliotrope

NE — Not Evaluated

Physical Characteristics

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

Habitat & Geographic 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).

smooth heliotrope

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (6 countries), Asia (5 countries), Europe (13 countries), North America (Cuba), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia, Marshall Islands), and South America (Brazil, Colombia).

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.