Death cap Amanita phalloides
deadly poisonous
_Link_177883.jpg){kind=link}
In a lengthways cut you can see the outlines of the cap, gills and stem.
View on the mapIdentification in 5 steps
The dusky puffball is a puffball with a bristly, warty surface that darkens as it ripens and smells unpleasant. It is inedible.
SeasonJuly to November
Spore printolive-brown
FamilyAgaricaceae
- Cap. The fruiting bodies are 2 to 4 cm wide, pear-shaped, whitish at first with dark, erect spines.
- Underside. There are no gills; the inside turns into olive-brown spore dust.
- Stem, ring and volva. The stem is only a short, stem-like area (a pseudostem); there is no ring and no volva.
- Smell and taste. When ripe it smells unpleasant and pungent; do not taste it.
- Flesh and colour change. The flesh turns olive-brown and powdery.
Lookalikes
Related puffballs are edible when young, but this species is inedible, and old or uncertainly identified puffballs do not belong in the kitchen.
Common earthball Scleroderma citrinum
poisonous
Its skin is thick and scaly-patterned, and the inside is marbled black-violet early on.
View on the mapCommon puffball Lycoperdon perlatum
edible
It smells inoffensively mushroomy and has white warts that fall off easily; its spore print is olive-brown. The dusky puffball, by contrast, has dark spines that lean together in groups and smells unpleasant.
View on the mapSide by side
| Dusky puffball | Death cap | Common earthball | Common puffball | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cap | fruiting bodies 2 to 4 cm wide, pear-shaped | egg-shaped, 3 to 5 cm, enclosed in a white sac | 3 to 10 cm, lumpy, yellow-brown, scaly-patterned | 3 to 8 cm tall, pear-shaped, spiny warts |
| Underside | no gills, inside turns into olive-brown spore dust | lengthways cut shows the gill primordia | no gills, inside marbled black-violet early on | no gills, inside olive-brown when ripe |
| Stem | only a short, stem-like area | lengthways cut shows the stem primordium with bulb | stalkless or with a short rooting base | lower part stem-like, sterile, chambered |
| Flesh | flesh turns olive-brown and powdery | white, with clear structure when cut | hard, thick skin, dark inside early on | pure white when young, olive-brown and powdery when ripe |
| Edibility | Inedible | deadly poisonous | poisonous | edible |
Habitat & Season
Acidic, humus-rich woodland soils, path verges. From the lowlands up to the hills and mountains.
Host trees
Deciduous and coniferous woods.
Season
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
possible good main season
On acidic woodland soils.
Mushroom regions with a daily forecast
There are no records per region for this species yet. The country pages lead to all regions with a daily forecast.
Safety
Never eat a mushroom you have not identified with certainty. Not an edible mushroom: do not collect it for the kitchen.
Advice for your country
Ireland
Poison centre:
National Poisons Information Centre (public line)(01) 809 2166
Emergency: 112 · 999
Germany
Poison centre:
Emergency: 112
Mushroom advice: DGfM: find a mushroom expert. Certified mushroom experts of the German Mycological Society (DGfM).
Collecting rules: Mushrooms that are not specially protected may be collected in small quantities for personal use unless a protected area or ban applies. Certain specially protected edible species (e.g. cep, chanterelle, birch bolete) may be collected in small quantities for personal use.
Austria
Poison centre:
Vergiftungsinformationszentrale (VIZ)01 406 43 43
Emergency: 112 · 144
Mushroom advice: Austrian Mycological Society (ÖMG): mushroom advice. Mushroom advice by the Austrian Mycological Society or regional services such as municipal market offices.
Collecting rules: At most 2 kg of mushrooms per person per day unless the forest owner has prohibited collecting; organised collecting events are prohibited. Additional state rules apply (collecting hours, closed seasons), e.g. Carinthia, Tyrol, Vorarlberg, Salzburg.
Why it is not edible
Unpleasant smell, no culinary value when ripe.
Do not confuse it with young common puffballs.
Frequently asked questions
Is the dusky puffball edible?
No, the dusky puffball is not edible. Related puffballs are edible when young, but this species is not, and old or doubtfully identified puffballs do not belong in the kitchen.
When and where does the dusky puffball grow?
The dusky puffball grows from July to November on acidic, humus-rich soils in deciduous and coniferous woods and on path verges.
Which look-alikes can the dusky puffball be confused with?
You can confuse it with the common puffball, the death cap in the egg stage and the common earthball. The common puffball smells inoffensively mushroomy and has white warts that fall off easily, whereas the dusky puffball has dark spines that lean together in groups. In a death cap in the egg stage, a lengthways cut shows the outlines of the cap, gills and stem. The common earthball has a thick, scaly-patterned skin, and its inside is marbled black-violet early on.
How do you recognise the dusky puffball?
The spore print is olive-brown. The fruiting bodies are 2 to 4 cm wide, pear-shaped, whitish at first with dark, erect spines.
Related species
- Common puffball Lycoperdon perlatum
- Parasol mushroom Macrolepiota procera
- Field mushroom Agaricus campestris
- Lawyers' wig Coprinus comatus
- Yellow-stainer Agaricus xanthodermus
- Chlorophyllum venenatum Chlorophyllum venenatum
Sources
Photo credits
- Photo: Júlio Reis (User:Tintazul) · CC BY-SA 2.5 · Wikimedia Commons
- Death cap: Photo: Justin Pierce (Mushroom Observer) · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Common earthball: Photo: Strobilomyces · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Common puffball: Photo: AnRo0002 · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons
No substitute for having your finds checked in person. No guarantee of accuracy. Updated: 17.10.2026.