The warm, soggy summer across much of the Midwest has produced a bumper crop of wild mushrooms — and a surge in calls to poison control centers.
FILE - In this Sept. 16, 2011, file photo, a mushroom grows at Winslow Park in Freeport, Maine. Maine. The warm, soggy summer across much of the Midwest has produced a bumper crop of wild mushrooms and a surge in calls to poison control centers. – calls from April through July were up 150% over the same period last year, said Samantha Lee, the center's director. The center took 90 calls for potential exposures over that period, compared to 26 calls for the same months in 2023.
The situation appears to be similar throughout wetter areas of the country this spring and summer. Kait Brown, clinical managing director ofsaid calls were up 26% across all states and territories for April through June. The Minnesota poison center issued a warning this month that wild mushrooms can be hard for untrained people to identify. Common ones that typically cause milder symptoms include the little brown mushrooms that grow in yards and the small white mushrooms that can form “fairy rings,” Brown said. But some deadly species also grow in the area, including one popularly known as the “death angel” or “destroying angel.” They can cause liver failure.
“The metro area of Minneapolis-St. Paul itself is having a huge year for mushrooms due to the previous few years of severe drought followed by this year’s extremely wet and cool spring, with consistent moisture thereafter,” said Tim Clemens, a professional forager and teacher who consults for the Minnesota poison center.
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