Cordyceps militaris

Other names:

Czech - red caterpillar
Latin - Cordyceps militaris

Brief description

Cordyceps militaris (red caterpillar) is an ergot-like fungus that parasitizes the pupae of butterflies. Most commonly, it is found on lichens. These pupae are hidden in soil, smouldering wood or moss.
Cordyceps militaris grows mainly in deciduous and mixed forests. Less frequently, it is found outside the forest in places where host insects are present. It can be found in lowland and higher ground from June to December. The mushroom is not edible.
The fruiting body of the mushroom grows out of the soil, out of the host pupa, and grows only about 20-60 mm above ground. The fruiting body is irregularly club-shaped or cylindrical, flattened, and rough. It is dark orange to red in colour. The mushroom spine is cylindrical, glabrous and lighter in colour than the fruiting body, remaining in the soil as deep as the host larva/ pupa was.
Although the mushroom is not edible, it is widely sought after because, like its fellow Cordyceps sinensis, it is used in traditional medicines.

Please be advised that our website can no longer make claims that might give the impression of any medicinal effect of herbs or mushrooms. Current EU legislation prohibits this. Even though traditional Chinese medicine has been around for thousands of years and has been tested on countless patients. At the same time, we must not mention the effects proven by contemporary scientific studies. But we believe in the common sense of our customers. For detailed information about herbs and mushrooms, please search the publicly available sources on the Internet. For example, valuable information can be found at www.tcmencyklopedie.cz.

Sources of information on vital mushrooms:

Martin Powell - Medicinal Mushrooms A Clinical Guide

Pavel Valíček - Mushrooms and their medicinal effects

G.M. Halpren, A.H. Miller - Medicinal Mushrooms Ancient Remedies dor Modern Ailments

G.M. Halpren - Healing Mushrooms

Christopher Hobbs - Medicinal Mushrooms An Ecploration of Tradition, Healing and Culture

Robert Rogers - The Fungal Pharmacy

Vladimir Ando - Pharmacology of Classical Chinese Medicine

Radomir Soch, Alexandr Jegorov - Encyclopedia of Medicinal Mushrooms

Bensky - Materia Medica