Yartsa Gunbu – $2,000 an Ounce
($32,000 per pound)
Growing from the bodies of ghost moth caterpillars, this parasitic fungus infects the caterpillar bodies with tiny spores which are air-borne. Once inside the caterpillars, the fungus eats its host alive. The caterpillars die slowly, ending up mummified in an upright position near the earth’s surface. In the early spring, the fungus emerges from the dead caterpillar and pokes right through its head to reach the top of the soil. The long thin mushrooms with round tops are easy to harvest and prized throughout the Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau in the altitudes between the 3,000 to 5,000-meter marks. Tibetan men believe the ancient texts which point to the fungus as an aphrodisiac. The best quality Yartsa sells for about $2,000 an ounce. It is considered a symbol of status to afford to eat this mushroom.
