Amanita muscaria is a very common mushroom in conifer areas all throughout the northern hemisphere. Amanita muscaria color is highly variable, from bright red (Amanita muscaria var. muscaria), to orange to yellow (Amanita muscaria var. formosa) to white (Amanita muscaria var. alba), but there are always white patches on the Amanita muscaria caps, remnants of the universal veil that covered the button stage. There seems to be a geographical distribution of Amanita muscaria in North America, with the red Amanita muscaria form being found mostly in the west and deep south, the orange Amanita muscaria form in the midwest and east, the yellow Amanita muscaria form mostly in the east, and the white Amanita muscaria form reportedly scattered throughout the country. Amanita muscaria can grow to be quite large, up to a foot high with caps as big as diner plates. Amanita muscaria is called the fly agaric because in some regions little pieces of the mushroom are placed in milk to attract flies. The flies become inebriated and crash into walls and die.