Caterpillar fungus from Arunachal_RKC01_180811
Ritesh Kumar Choudhary
Dear all,
Sharing the photographs of Cordyceps sinensis (popularly known as Caterpillar fungus).
Loc.: Collected from a local seller at Itanagar in 2008. Occurrence of this plant is evident in Tawang area (ca 3000msl) of Arunachal Pradesh.
Notes:
1. An entomopathogenic fungi (an Ascomycete fungi which grows in association with insects or arthropods).
2. A traditional Chinese medicine which has proved qualities of an anti-cancer agent, immunity booster, hepatic-protective agent and many more.
Hope you'll find it interesting.
Regards,
Ritesh.
Vijayasankar
National Center for Natural Products Research
University of Mississippi
Tanay Bose
Department of Botany.
University of British Columbia .
3529-6270 University Blvd.
Vancouver, B.C. V6T 1Z4 (Canada)
Phone: 778-323-4036 (Mobile)
Ritesh Kumar Choudhary
It was available @ Rs. 50/- per piece. :-)
Regards,
Ritesh.
Pankaj Kumar
me Ritesh, you got it too cheap may be because it doesnt look of good
quality but this indeed is the top priced medicinal plant in
international market. May be you could have taken 1kg to Korea and you
could have been rich selling the whole thing :))
Regards
Pankaj
On Thu, Aug 18, 2011 at 10:37 AM, Dr Pankaj Kumar
<sahani...@gmail.com> wrote:
--
***********************************************
"TAXONOMISTS GETTING EXTINCT AND SPECIES DATA DEFICIENT !!"
Pankaj Kumar Ph.D. (Orchidaceae)
Research Associate
Greater Kailash Sacred Landscape Project
Department of Habitat Ecology
Wildlife Institute of India
Post Box # 18
Dehradun - 248001, India
Ritesh Choudhary
Thanks for sharing your pics dear Pankaj!
Cant believe the price in Hong Kong! Anyway...send me some packets
when you'll shift there ;-)
Regards,
Ritesh.
Vijayasankar
Value
According to Daniel Winkler, the price of Cordyceps sinensis has risen dramatically on the Tibetan Plateau, basically 900% between 1998 and 2008, an annual average of over 20%. However, the value of big-sized caterpillar fungus has increased more dramatically than smaller size Cordyceps, regarded as lower quality.[19]
| Year | % Price increase | Price/kg (Yuan) |
|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 1,800 | |
| 1997 | 467% (incl. inflation) | 8,400 |
| 2004 | 429% (incl. inflation) | 36,000 |
| 2005 | 10,000–60,000 |
According to Modern Marvels, a show on the History Channel, mushroom hunters in Nepal can earn 900 dollars for an ounce of cordyceps.[1]
The high value of cordyceps was evidently the reason it was one of only two Chinese traditional medicines to be stolen in a brazen theft in British Columbia. The stolen cordyceps has been estimated to have been worth Can $38,000.
Note: 6.4 Chinese Yuan = 1 USD
National Center for Natural Products Research
University of Mississippi