Magic mushrooms are naturally occurring, non-poisonous fungi which contain varying amounts of the conscious-altering substances psilocybin and psilocin.

When eaten or drunk in a tea, they combine readily and hungrily with the brain to evoke a powerful psychedelic trip experience, shorter-lived but similar in tone and effect to LSD.

There are over 90 species of magic mushrooms world-wide. Common varieties include UK and Northern Europe's 'Liberty Caps' (Psilocybe semilanceata) and North America's Psilocybe cubensis.

The world's most famous magic mushroom is the European Fly Agaric (amanita muscaria), the red-and-white spotted toadstool which often pops up in children's literature. However, it contains ibotenic acid and muscimol not psilocybin and has very different effects.

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appearance
Mushrooms are light to dark brown in colour and come in fresh, dried or powdered forms. All of them taste disgusting.

They smell distinctively 'mushroomy' and are impossible to confuse with any other powdered drug.

They usually sell for around £5 per gram.

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legality
In the UK, mushrooms and psilocybin are class A drugs, alongside LSD, cocaine and heroin. In the US they are in schedule 1.