Ghost Fungus resembling human hand in West Thailand garden sparks lottery number superstitions

An uncanny, death-stenched fungus, similar to a human hand or known as Ghost Fungus, emerged in a Ko Lanta, West Thailand, resident’s front garden, sparking lottery number speculations based on the house number. This happened yesterday, and the discovery was reported through social media by a bewildered resident. The woman resident said…

“The peculiar mushroom showed up at my sister’s house. It looks like a human hand and smells like a decomposing animal carcass. Nobody knows what variety this is, but we found out it’s a #GhostFungus or #InkCapMushroom.

“It’s the second mushroom that has popped up. The first one was tossed away due to its horrific smell and fly infestation. It’s a mystery how these sprouted up, but certainly, it’s the world’s second rarest fungus according to some YouTube videos. We do hope this will bring luck and fortune as its appearance is deemed to be a good omen. For your reference, her house number is 85/66 in case it might bring us all some luck.”

Upon social media sharing of these unusual fungal photos, numerous fortune hopefuls began posting diverse comments.

“Definitely playing the lottery the next round.”

“Go for it, don’t forget 75, because mushroom= 5, and we have seven fingers.”

Upon inquiry, the post creator, who runs a restaurant named ‘Happy Veggie’ in Koh Lanta, revealed that this strange mushroom was discovered at her sister’s house in a different province earlier this month. It’s indeed the second of its kind, and the first one was thrown away due to its odour. Prominently seen in the front garden, it shared notable similarities to a human hand and emitted a horrible smell. After taking pictures and searching on social media, it turned out to be the Ghost Fungus or the Stinkhorn Mushroom, leading to the discussion posts, reported Sanook. The resident added…

“I really wondered what exactly it was, as we’d never seen anything like it before.

Once we realised it was the Ghost Fungus, famously known as Ink Cap or the Stinky Horn, we decided to share these posts on our Facebook accounts – and that’s when it started to generate buzz.”