LAFAYETTE, CALIFORNIA – This should hopefully be obvious. But unfortunately, given that multiple people have died already this season (including at least one person locally), the California Department of Public Health has to say it directly: don’t eat mushrooms you forage in local parks.
A warning posted at the Lafayette Reservoir warned locals that “Some Wild Mushrooms Are Deadly.” Those includes several species often found around the Reservoir and in other local parks.
The laminated notice highlights two of the biggest dangers in Northern California: Death Cap mushrooms (Amanita phalloides) and Western Destroying Angel mushrooms (Amanita ocreata). CDPH warns that eating either can lead to severe illness, liver failure, and death.
One of the scariest parts of dangerous “amanita” poisonings is that symptoms can be delayed. UC Davis Health notes that Amanita phalloides classically causes nausea and vomiting more than six hours after ingestion and sometimes only days later– a delay toxicologists treat as a major red flag.
Why the warning now?
It comes amid an ongoing spike in serious wild mushroom poisonings across California, driven largely by amatoxin-producing species like the Death Cap (Amanita phalloides) and Western Destroying Angel (Amanita ocreata).
CDPH has repeatedly cautioned that these mushrooms are easy to confuse with edible varieties — and that cooking, drying, or freezing does not make them safe.
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In early December 2025, CDPH reported a cluster of 21 amatoxin poisoning cases statewide and said at least one adult fatality had been reported at that time.
By mid-January 2026, CDPH said the outbreak had grown significantly — and that the state had recorded three adult fatalities and at least three liver transplants linked to the poisoning surge.
Closer to home, Contra Costa health officials confirmed that a county resident in his 60s died after consuming toxic wild mushrooms that were foraged at a regional park in the county.
This isn’t the first time mushroom safety has been flagged at the reservoir. An EBMUD Lafayette Reservoir recreation/trails handout specifically warns that two of the world’s most toxic mushrooms grow in the region (Death Cap and Western Destroying Angel) and says: do not eat or collect any mushrooms found in the wild, and keep pets leashed and children under close supervision.
(As always: even if you’re not planning to forage, kids and dogs can grab things fast on a busy path.)
Teach your kids to leave mushrooms alone–and especially during this bad season for mushroom poisonings, never eat mushrooms you forage in the wild.
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