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Four have died and three others needed to undergo life-saving liver transplants after eating death cap mushrooms in California.
The fungi, which is known to cause severe vomiting and stomach pain in sufferers, and death in many cases, closely resembles edible varieties.
This case of mistaken identity has caused more than three dozen people to become poisoned, per the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) since November 18.
Those who ate the mushrooms, began to show signs of acute liver injury before liver failure, with a number of patients requiring to be admitted to the intensive care unit for life-saving treatment.
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According to the CDPH, these cases have rapidly increased, leading it to release a warning to those in the area.
From November onwards, 39 people were poisoned in California and four people passed away, with the CDPH stating: “California is experiencing an unprecedented outbreak of severe illness and deaths associated with people accidentally picking and eating Death Cap mushrooms.”
"This greatly exceeds the typical report of less than 5 cases of mushroom poisonings a year," the department explained.
Nationally, US Poison Centers reportedly dealt with 2,315 mushroom exposures between September 2025 and January 2026, which is 40 per cent higher than the previous year.
Death cap mushrooms have been found in local and national parks across Northern California and the Central Coast, with more mushrooms being seen in the area due to heavy rainfall.
The CDPH revealed that ‘best way to stay safe is to not eat wild mushrooms’, and to avoid eating any picked by those close to you.
It also advises to watch children closely when they play outside where mushrooms grow’ as ‘most poisonings happen to children under 6 years old’.
Instead, buying your mushrooms from a trusted grocery store is the best way to source mushrooms.
The public health department revealed that many of those who had been poisoned were Spanish, Mixteco, and Mandarin Chinese speakers.
As some who were poisoned revealed the mushrooms looked like those native to Mexico, which were safe to eat, the CDPH stressed: “Poisonous mushrooms can look and taste similar to safe mushrooms. Some may resemble mushrooms that you can buy in a grocery store. Additionally, newly arrived persons to California who are accustomed to foraging in their home country may mistake poisonous mushrooms in California for safe mushrooms foraged or cultivated in their native country. Foragers in California face great risk.”
The department also translated its mushroom warnings in multiple languages, including Spanish as 60 per cent of those poisoned spoke Spanish as their primary language.
Symptoms of mushroom poisoning occurs withing six to 24 hours after ingestion, with initial symptoms including stomach pain, cramping, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, drop in blood pressure, fatigue and confusion.
However, it can also lead to liver damage, kidney damage, hallucinations and euphoria, seizures and death.
For emergency poisoning or questions, contact US Poison Control Centers on 1-800-222-1222 or via PoisonHelp.org.
