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🔗 Fishes 🔗 Psychoactive and Recreational Drugs 🔗 Altered States of Consciousness

Several species of fish are claimed to produce hallucinogenic effects when consumed. For example, Sarpa salpa, a species of sea bream, is commonly claimed to be hallucinogenic. These widely distributed coastal fish are normally found in the Mediterranean and around Spain, and along the west and south coasts of Africa. Occasionally they are found in British waters. They may induce hallucinogenic effects that are purportedly LSD-like if eaten. In 2006, two men who apparently ate the fish experienced hallucinations lasting for several days. The likelihood of hallucinations depends on the season. Sarpa salpa is known as "the fish that makes dreams" in Arabic.

Other species claimed to be capable of producing hallucinations include several species of sea chub from the genus Kyphosus. It is unclear whether the toxins are produced by the fish themselves or by marine algae in their diet. Other hallucinogenic fish are Siganus spinus, called "the fish that inebriates" in Reunion Island, and Mulloidichthys flavolineatus (formerly Mulloidichthys samoensis), called "the chief of ghosts" in Hawaii.

🔗 Books 🔗 Amphibians and Reptiles 🔗 Psychoactive and Recreational Drugs 🔗 Altered States of Consciousness

Bufo Alvarius: the Psychedelic Toad of the Sonoran Desert is an underground pamphlet written by Albert Most (real name Ken Nelson (1954–2019)), illustrated by Gail Patterson, and published by Venom Press in 1984. It described how to extract the venom of the Sonoran Desert toad (formerly Bufo alvarius, now Incilius alvarius), which contains the serotonergic psychedelic 5-MeO-DMT, and administer the venom to produce hallucinogenic effects. The pamphlet was responsible for the start of the recreational use of the toad venom and of 5-MeO-DMT. Subsequently, Andrew Weil and Wade Davis, in part citing the pamphlet, described the psychoactive effects of the toad in the scientific literature in 1992. In addition, they described the finding as the first instance of a psychedelic from an animal source to be discovered. Following the publication of the pamphlet, recreational use of the toads was encountered by the late 1980s and became a media sensation.

The pamphlet was originally published pseudonymously. Journalist Hamilton Morris described becoming obsessed with identifying the author of the pamphlet. Morris came upon a man named Alfred Savinelli, who claimed to be the author, and published this in his documentary series Hamilton's Pharmacopeia in 2017. Savinelli as the author, however, ultimately proved to be incorrect. The real author, Ken Nelson, subsequently contacted Morris and proved his identity. In 2020, a new episode of Hamilton's Pharmacopeia revealed Nelson as the true author, and Morris apologized for the mistake. Nelson died due to Parkinson's disease in 2019 prior to the airing. In 2021, with Nelson's permission, Morris (and two producers: Justin Clark and Soren Shade) published a revised and expanded edition of the pamphlet that included a chemical synthesis for 5-MeO-DMT. The inclusion of the synthesis of 5-MeO-DMT was prompted by concerns about endangerment and reduction of the toad population.

🔗 Psychology 🔗 Altered States of Consciousness

The Dreamachine (a contraction of Dream Machine) is a stroboscopic flickering light art device that produces eidetic visual stimuli. Artist Brion Gysin and William S. Burroughs' "systems adviser" Ian Sommerville created the Dreamachine after reading William Grey Walter's book, The Living Brain.

🔗 Plants 🔗 Psychoactive and Recreational Drugs 🔗 Altered States of Consciousness 🔗 South America

Ayahuasca is a South American (pan-Amazonian) psychoactive brew used both socially and as ceremonial spiritual medicine among the indigenous peoples of the Amazon basin. It is a psychedelic and entheogenic brew commonly made out of the Banisteriopsis caapi vine, the Psychotria viridis shrub or a substitute, and possibly other ingredients. A chemically similar preparation, sometimes called "pharmahuasca", can be prepared using N,N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and a pharmaceutical monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI), such as isocarboxazid. B. caapi contains several alkaloids that act as MAOIs, which are required for DMT to be orally active. Ayahuasca is prepared in a tea that, when consumed, causes an altered state of consciousness or "high", including visual hallucinations and altered perceptions of reality.

The other required ingredient is a plant that contains the primary psychoactive, DMT. This is usually the shrub P. viridis, but Diplopterys cabrerana may be used as a substitute. Other plant ingredients often or occasionally used in the production of ayahuasca include Justicia pectoralis, one of the Brugmansia (especially Brugmansia insignis and Brugmansia versicolor, or a hybrid breed) or Datura species, and mapacho (Nicotiana rustica).