Poisonous

Types of Poisonous Mushrooms: Field Signs and Safe ID

Learn to recognize poisonous mushrooms and the edible species they resemble. You study these species for a single purpose, so that you never eat any of them by mistake.

Poisonous

Every species on this page is toxic. Do not eat any of them. Study each one to recognize and avoid it.

Species in this group

53 species
Thin white angel wing mushrooms in overlapping nearly stemless fans on a decayed conifer log

Angel Wing

Pleurocybella porrigens

Poisonous
Beautiful clavaria with a pale base, salmon-pink branches, and yellow tips in woodland litter

Beautiful Clavaria

Ramaria formosa

Poisonous
Large orange big laughing gym cluster with rusty gills and ringed stems on decaying wood

Big Laughing Gym

Gymnopilus junonius

Poisonous
Bitter beech bolete with a pale cap, yellow pores, and a red netted stem on woodland soil

Bitter Beech Bolete

Caloboletus calopus

Poisonous
Large clay-brown bitter poisonpie with cinnamon gills and a coarse pale stem beneath beech

Bitter Poisonpie

Hebeloma sinapizans

Poisonous
Blackedge bonnet showing lilac-gray cap and dark-edged pale gills

Blackedge Bonnet

Mycena pelianthina

Poisonous
Crowded pale tan blistered cup fungi opening from dung-rich straw

Blistered Cup

Peziza vesiculosa

Poisonous
Blood-red webcap with red cap gills stem and cobwebby cortina in moss

Blood-Red Webcap

Cortinarius sanguineus

Poisonous
Booted amanita with pale patched cap free white gills ring and collared bulb

Booted Amanita

Amanita multisquamosa

Poisonous
Massive brawny bolete with red pores netted stem and dark blue-black cut flesh

Brawny Bolete

Imperator torosus

Poisonous
A brown roll-rim mushroom with an inrolled cottony cap margin and yellowish gills running down the stem

Brown Roll-Rim

Paxillus involutus

Poisonous
Burnt knight with wet chestnut cap notched pale gills and brown lower stem

Burnt Knight

Tricholoma ustale

Poisonous
A tight cluster of small tawny deadly galerina mushrooms growing from rotting wood

Deadly Galerina

Galerina marginata

Poisonous
Illustration of a reddish-brown deadly webcap with a dry cap and yellowish veil patches in mossy woodland

Deadly Webcap

Cortinarius rubellus

Poisonous
A pale greenish Death Cap mushroom showing white gills, a ring, and a cup-like base

Death Cap

Amanita phalloides

Poisonous
A pure white destroying angel mushroom with free white gills, a skirt-like ring, and a sac around its base

Destroying Angel

Amanita bisporigera

Poisonous
Eastern flat-top Agaricus with a dark-scaled pale cap and slender ringed stem in leaf litter

Eastern Flat-Top Agaricus

Agaricus placomyces

Poisonous
A reddish-brown false morel with a brain-like wrinkled cap

False Morel

Gyromitra esculenta

Poisonous
A bright red fly agaric mushroom covered in white cottony warts with a white ring and a banded swollen base

Fly Agaric

Amanita muscaria

Poisonous
Gemmed amanita in pine needle duff with a pale creamy yellow cap bearing soft white veil patches

Gemmed Amanita

Amanita gemmata

Poisonous
A cluster of pale cream ghost fungus caps on a eucalyptus stump in daylight, with crowded gills running down the stems

Ghost Fungus

Omphalotus nidiformis

Poisonous
A large white green-spored parasol with brown cap scales and a ringed stem growing in mown grass

Green-Spored Parasol

Chlorophyllum molybdites

Poisonous
A cluster of bright orange Jack O'Lantern mushrooms growing on a stump

Jack O'Lantern

Omphalotus illudens

Poisonous
A brown panther cap mushroom scattered with white cottony warts, showing white gills and a collared bulb at the stem base

Panther Cap

Amanita pantherina

Poisonous
Sulphur knight mushroom in oak leaf litter with a bright sulphur yellow cap and slender yellow stem

Sulphur Knight

Tricholoma sulphureum

Poisonous
White-capped yellow stainer mushrooms with flattened tops growing in short lawn grass

Yellow Stainer

Agaricus xanthodermus

Poisonous
Small cinnamon webcaps with brown caps, orange gills and yellowish stems in moss

Cinnamon Webcap

Cortinarius cinnamomeus

Poisonous
Illustrated cluster of gray common inkcaps in different growth stages beside a decaying stump

Common Inkcap

Coprinopsis atramentaria

Poisonous
Freckled dapperlings with pointed brown cap scales and ringed stems in woodland litter

Freckled Dapperling

Echinoderma asperum

Poisonous
A small tan liberty cap mushroom in grass with a conical cap and a sharp pointed tip

Liberty Cap

Psilocybe semilanceata

Poisonous
Lilac bonnet mushrooms with striate violet-gray caps and slender stems in woodland leaf litter

Lilac Bonnet

Mycena pura

Poisonous
Robust rosy bonnet mushrooms with broad pink caps and pale stems in beech leaf litter

Rosy Bonnet

Mycena rosea

Poisonous
Tawny webcaps with dry yellow-brown caps and clubbed stems in conifer woodland

Tawny Webcap

Aureonarius callisteus

Poisonous
Robust tiger knight mushrooms with gray-brown scaled caps and white stems on a forest floor

Tiger Knight

Tricholoma pardinum

Poisonous
A yellow knight mushroom with a greenish yellow cap and bright yellow gills growing in sandy soil

Yellow Knight

Tricholoma equestre

Poisonous
Warty yellow-brown common earthballs in moss with one mature shell split open

Common Earthball

Scleroderma citrinum

Poisonous
Small deadly dapperling mushrooms with pink-brown scaled caps and pale gills in damp soil

Deadly Dapperling

Lepiota brunneoincarnata

Poisonous
Pale deadly fibrecaps with fibrous caps and brick-red stains on soil beneath broadleaf trees

Deadly Fibrecap

Inosperma erubescens

Poisonous
Massive devil's bolete with a pale cap, red pores, and bulbous red-netted stem in leaf litter

Devil's Bolete

Rubroboletus satanas

Poisonous
Felt-ringed agaricus mushrooms in western conifer woodland

Felt-Ringed Agaricus

Agaricus hondensis

Poisonous
Tiny fool's conecap mushrooms with cinnamon caps and slender ringed stems among wet wood chips

Fool's Conecap

Pholiotina rugosa

Poisonous
Small white fool's funnel mushrooms with shallow caps and descending gills in short grass

Fool's Funnel

Clitocybe rivulosa

Poisonous
Fool's mushroom with a white cap, free gills, upper ring, and baglike volva in spring oak litter

Fool's Mushroom

Amanita verna

Poisonous
Fool's webcap with a dry tawny cap, rusty gills and a pale fibrous stem

Fool's Webcap

Cortinarius orellanus

Poisonous
Inky mushrooms with dark gray cap scales and yellow-stained stem bases

Inky Mushroom

Agaricus moelleri

Poisonous
Livid pinkgill with a large pale lobed cap, salmon gills, and ringless stem in broadleaf litter

Livid Pinkgill

Entoloma sinuatum

Poisonous
Dense sulphur tuft cluster with yellow caps and tan centers on a decaying stump

Sulphur Tuft

Hypholoma fasciculare

Poisonous
Western destroying angel with a white cap, free gills, fragile ring, and membranous volva in oak leaf litter

Western Destroying Angel

Amanita ocreata

Poisonous
Tiny white fibrecap with a pointed silky cap and slender ringless stem beside moss and a beech leaf

White Fibrecap

Inocybe geophylla

Poisonous
Pink zoned woolly milkcaps with shaggy inrolled margins among birch leaves

Woolly Milkcap

Lactarius torminosus

Poisonous
Two club foot mushrooms showing pale decurrent gills and swollen lower stems in woodland litter

Club Foot

Ampulloclitocybe clavipes

Poisonous
Pale poison pie mushrooms with sticky caps and clay-brown gills in autumn woodland litter

Poison Pie

Hebeloma crustuliniforme

Poisonous
Scaly inkcap cluster with gray-brown caps, small brown scales and darkening gills growing from a stump

Scaly Inkcap

Coprinopsis romagnesiana

Poisonous Keep browsing Browse mushrooms by edibility

Why learn these species at all?

This tier runs from mushrooms that cause a miserable night to a few that can kill. You learn them so that you never eat any of them by mistake. Knowing them by sight is the core skill of safe foraging, because most serious poisonings start when someone confuses a toxic mushroom with an edible species. Several of them pass for prized edibles, such as the Jack O'Lantern for chanterelles and the false morel for true morels.

How the poisons differ

Many poisonous species cause severe cramps and vomiting, and the illness passes. Only a small number, led by the death cap, destroy the liver and can be fatal. The member profiles fall into a handful of toxin types, and each type attacks the body in its own way.

  • Destroying angel and deadly galerina carry the same amatoxins as the death cap, and cooking does not neutralize them
  • Deadly webcap contains orellanine, which can cause delayed kidney injury
  • Fly agaric and panther cap contain ibotenic acid and muscimol, which act on the brain
  • Fool's funnel contains muscarine, and its symptoms can start before the meal has finished digesting
  • Common inkcap contains coprine, which sets up an alcohol-triggered reaction after the meal is over
  • Jack O'Lantern and the green-spored parasol cause severe vomiting and diarrhea, sometimes with fluid loss that needs hospital care
  • False morel contains gyromitrin, and its illness can involve delayed gut, liver and nerve effects

Warning

The most dangerous toxins act with a delay. Feeling fine hours after eating proves nothing about safety. If in doubt after eating any wild mushroom, call Poison Control or emergency services right away, and keep a sample of the mushroom.

The habits that keep you safe

Study the deadly lookalikes of anything you forage, and check every feature, including the base of the stem. When you are not certain, throw the mushroom out. If someone may have eaten a poisonous species, call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222 in the United States before symptoms start, and follow the steps to take while you wait for help.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are all poisonous mushrooms deadly?

No. Many cause severe cramps and vomiting, and the illness passes. Only a small number, led by the death cap, damage the liver and can be fatal, so every unknown mushroom deserves caution.

Why learn poisonous mushrooms if I will not eat them?

Because knowing the dangerous species by sight is how you avoid eating one by mistake. Most serious poisonings come from confusing a toxic mushroom with an edible one.

What should I do if I think I ate a poisonous mushroom?

Call Poison Control or emergency services right away, even before symptoms start, because the deadliest toxins act with a delay. Save a sample of the mushroom so an expert can identify it.