Suddenly exploded! Someone in Chengdu formed a group to pick up at 3am! Expert Urgent Reminder: Danger

"This weekend, we will go to Qinglong Lake Wetland Park to form a team to 'fight wild', hoping that there will be no 'air force'."

"The main theme is an experience, I dare not eat it. Because when I see the fungus, the folk song 'Red umbrella, white pole, let's lie on the board together after eating' will ring in my mind."

The joy of the weekend is given by picking up bacteria

Recently, people in Chengdu have been very busy on weekends, not only camping and chasing the sunrise in Longquan Mountain, but also picking up mushrooms in the park. Even some "mushroom pickers" have shared "mushroom picking strategies" on online platforms, and more curious citizens have joined the "mushroom picking army" through online teams to experience the fun of "fighting wild". A wave of "picking up mushrooms" swept through Chengdu for a while.

How was the experience of picking up bacteria? Are there any security risks? What are the precautions? At around 5:30 am on August 27th, a reporter from Red Star News came to Qinglong Lake Wetland Park to search for the figure of the "mushroom picker" and experience picking mushrooms in the park.

▲ On the internet, "Fungi Pickers" share mushroom picking strategies

The "mushroom pickers" in the park:

When it's not dawn, start picking and say the first sentence, "Did you pick up any bacteria?"

At 5:40 am, citizens of Qinglonghu Wetland Park were already running and cycling on the greenway. Walking north along the greenway, there are occasional flashlight beams shaking in the nearby woods.

"They came to pick up mushrooms, and someone arrived at 3 or 4 in the morning. They were digging in the forest with flashlights. It rained the night before, and wild mushrooms would definitely emerge from the soil the next day." 65 year old citizen Zhu Changgui said, living near the second phase of Qinglong Lake Wetland Park and coming here every day to exercise. "Recently, standing by the window of my home, I can occasionally see the light emitted by flashlights in the forest."

▲ The early morning "mushroom picker"

"Perhaps due to the temperature, or maybe because there have been more people coming, there have been fewer mushrooms in the forest these days." Lin Xiangguo, a citizen who is exercising on the side, said that since early August this year, more people have come to Qinglong Lake Wetland Park to pick mushrooms. "Some people who understand the growth laws of mushrooms can pick 3-4 kilograms of mushrooms in the morning, a full bag." Another citizen, Zhou Chunli, added, "Those who haven't picked mushrooms will dig some bamboo shoots and pick some green Sichuan peppercorns to bring home. They can't come in vain."

▲ "Fungi Pickers" Team up in Qinglong Lake Wetland Park

The reporter noticed that people wearing long pants, with mud stains on their pants legs and shoes, and carrying plastic baskets, are mostly here to pick up bacteria. Interestingly, there seems to be a tacit understanding among these "mushroom pickers". When they pass by each other, they first make eye contact, and then the first sentence they say is "Did you pick up the mushroom?". Some people meet and smile at each other, not saying a word, but shaking their heads, representing "no gains today.".

"We searched in the forest for over 2 hours and saw a few brightly colored mushrooms that were toxic at first glance, but we couldn't find any edible mushrooms. To collect the mushrooms, Xu Pancake and his companions formed a group and came together. Teammate Jia Jia Jia said," We didn't find the mushrooms, but we saw the sunrise in the forest. The 'Tindar' effect is very beautiful. "Then, they showed the reporter their built-in mushroom collection tools, including plastic baskets, flower planting shovels, nail rakes, and gloves.".

▲ Tools for "Fungi Pickers"

In the forest near Longwen Island, another group of mushroom pickers appeared. "We arrived at 5am, and the fungi might have been dug up by the previous group of people who came over 4 o'clock. I saw them picking up half a basket of fungi." Chen Kefan said with some disappointment, as he and his girlfriend checked the online "Mushroom Picking Guide" and drove over from Pidu District early to pick up the fungi. As a result, they became an "Air Force". This feeling is like a 'buyer show' and a 'seller show'. When I see people picking up bacteria and returning home, reality tells me that the key is to participate, just experience it.

Journalist's on-site experience:

Unable to find the chicken fir fungus but encountered a snake, most of the "mushroom collectors" returned empty handed

At around 7 o'clock in the morning, the reporter arrived at the address shared on the "Mushroom Picking Guide" and found multiple traces of small shovels and rakes dug at the foot of the shady trees along the wild path along the greenway.

After entering the forest for about 10 minutes, the reporter found several fungi next to a pile of grass near a decaying tree. These few mushrooms are in the shape of white umbrellas, surrounded by a nest of white round headed small mushrooms that have just emerged from the ground, and do not appear to be the vivid poisonous mushrooms in my impression. But through image recognition, the reporter found that this bacterium may be Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which is toxic.

The deeper you walk into the forest, the darker the light and the wetter the ground. During this period, there were many mosquitoes and ants. Just on a hillside near a small pond, the reporter also encountered a flower snake with a white black pattern and a length of about 1 meter. Not only that, as the sun rises, the surface temperature begins to rise, and the forest becomes even hotter. Without proper sun protection and cooling materials, it is easy to experience heatstroke symptoms. There are also brownish red fungi in the bushes along the way, which have been identified as toxic based on identification maps. During this period, the reporter also saw green and white pepper trees and bamboo shoots in the forest, almost all of which had been artificially picked.

▲ "Fungi Picker" is digging for bacteria

During the experience, the reporter encountered nearly 10 groups of "mushroom pickers" in different forests, of which 8 groups returned empty handed, and only 2 groups dug bamboo shoots, fungus, and Sichuan peppercorns to take away.

"We searched for over 2 hours and only found a few 'mini' mushrooms to take home as a souvenir. When the reporter saw Mr. Chen and his girlfriend, the two of them were holding hiking sticks. Although their pants and shoes were covered in mud stains, they still enthusiastically displayed their 'achievements'.". Another group of "mushroom pickers" Yun Zhu and her friends were not so lucky. They searched the forest for nearly three hours and "didn't see any edible mushrooms, dug some bamboo shoots and took them away." They smiled and said, "It doesn't matter if we didn't pick them up, the important thing is to experience the process of 'farming'. Earlier, we saw several groups of people in the forest, but only one group led by the elderly seemed to have gained some, picking up half a basket of mushrooms.".

▲ Bamboo shoots and Sichuan peppers picked by the "mushroom picker"

In another forest, Mr. Chen, a citizen, introduced that he had dug up Ganoderma lucidum, matsutake, and edible mushrooms in the mountains around Chengdu. "I arrived at around 7 o'clock in the morning and drove over from Shuangliu to experience 'wild farming' with my family. However, I didn't gain much. After searching for more than an hour, I only found some small fungus."

In the 3-hour mushroom picking experience, the reporter did not find the chicken fir fungus mentioned by netizens, and from the reporter's personal experience, there is a certain risk in the mushroom picking process, and the number of fungi is relatively small.

Regarding this, the on-site management staff of Qinglong Lake Wetland Park stated, "We have also noticed this phenomenon and have strengthened on-site management efforts. Our staff will promptly advise when they discover such situations during patrols." In addition, there are safety warning signs in some parts of the park, indicating the presence of snakes. "These warning signs have always been present, and we hope everyone pays attention to safety while playing.".

Expert reminder:

Reasonably participate in bacterial picking and pay attention to ecological diversity protection

As the mega city with the largest altitude difference on a global scale, Chengdu has a wide variety of biological species, complete categories, and an exceptionally rich variety of unique and rare species. Data shows that currently, the Qinglong Lake Wetland Park has recorded over 200 species of wild birds, including more than 30 rare, vulnerable, and endangered bird species. In addition, this is a comprehensive park with wetlands, forests, and large grasslands, making its ecological resources rich and precious.

According to several experienced "mushroom collectors", besides Qinglong Lake Wetland Park, fungi can be found near Tianfu Avenue, Longquan Mountain, Shuangliu Muma Mountain and other places in Chengdu. So, what kind of bacteria are these found by the "mushroom pickers" in Chengdu? According to Professor Lin Qiang, a researcher at the Sichuan Academy of Forestry Sciences, some people have indeed found the fungus Jicong. Taking the Jicong found in the Qinglong Lake Wetland Park as an example, its growth rate is very fast this season, so it is easy to pick. However, "Picking wild fungi without professional guidance is very dangerous, and consumption should be resolutely avoided."

As for the fungi that the reporter saw in the Qinglong Lake Wetland Park, Lin Qiang said that most of them are toxic, including ring-shaped mushrooms, snow-white ghost umbrellas, and silk covered umbrellas. "In the surrounding areas of Chengdu, such as parks and green belts, common fungi include striped helminths, large green pleated fungi, and white poisonous goosegrass fungi, all of which are highly toxic and deadly. Taking goosegrass fungi as an example, the goosegrass genus has the form of wearing a hat on the head, a skirt around the waist, and boots on the feet, and most of the bacteria with this form are toxic or even highly toxic.". "Goose paste fungi are the most lethal highly toxic mushrooms. These toxins cause severe damage to the human liver, kidneys, central nervous system, and other organs."

Fungi found in the forests of Qinglong Lake Wetland Park, including ring-shaped mushrooms, zebras, snow-white ghost umbrellas, and silk covered umbrellas

Lin Qiang expressed concern about the phenomenon of mushroom picking becoming hot in Chengdu Park. "In the 'pyramid' of the ecosystem, fungi belong to the bottom layer, but they are not dispensable in the ecosystem. They are material decomposers and recyclers." This also means that areas where fungi grow represent their ecological health, and some species may be fungi with important scientific research value. Therefore, when picking fungi, everyone should pay attention to the protection of ecological diversity. " Finally, Lin Qiang suggests that citizens should participate in the experience of picking fungi rationally and try not to consume fungi they have picked or do not know, as there may be a risk of mixing non-toxic and toxic fungi.