Destroying angel vs meadow mushroom
- Deadly: Destroying Angel
Destroying angels keep white gills, print white and hide a cup at the base. Meadow mushrooms have pink to brown gills and a brown print.
Destroying angel vs gem-studded puffball: only the egg has gills inside
Quick answer
Sliced top to bottom, an unopened destroying angel egg shows the outline of a cap, gills and stem; a gem-studded puffball is uniform pure white inside. The puffball's surface is covered in short cone-shaped spines that rub off and leave a net of scars, while the Amanita egg is smooth and white.
Deadly lookalike
The destroying angel is deadly.
Unlike the gem-studded puffball, the destroying angel (Amanita bisporigera) contains amatoxins. The Missouri Department of Conservation records that symptoms often do not appear until 6 to 24 hours after eating, starting with vomiting, diarrhea and cramps, followed by kidney or liver dysfunction that can lead to death. The CDC explains that amatoxins halt protein production in cells, and that they are heat stable and not inactivated by cooking.
If someone has eaten a wild mushroom and feels unwell, or may have eaten one of these, call poison control now: 1-800-222-1222 in the US. Do not wait for symptoms.
Side by side
The tell for each
Deadly
The tellPure white all over, with white gills, a skirt-like ring, and a white sac-like cup around a bulb at the base.
Edible when pure white inside
The tellA small white, top-shaped puffball covered in cone-shaped spines that rub off and leave a net of tiny scars.
How they differ
| Feature | Destroying Angel | Gem-Studded Puffball |
|---|---|---|
| Sliced top to bottom | Destroying AngelThe outline of a cap, gills and stem inside a white skin. | Gem-Studded PuffballUniform pure white flesh with no internal structure. |
| Surface | Destroying AngelSmooth and white. | Gem-Studded PuffballCovered in short cone-shaped spines that rub off, leaving a net of scars. |
| Shape | Destroying AngelEgg-shaped, the base in a white sac. | Gem-Studded PuffballTop-shaped: round on top, narrowing to a thick stem-like base. |
| Base | Destroying AngelA bulb in a white, membranous sac-like cup, often buried. | Gem-Studded PuffballA spongy sterile base that is part of the puffball; no cup. |
| Mature form | Destroying AngelOpens into a pure white mushroom with white gills, a ring and a cup. | Gem-Studded PuffballStays a ball; a pore opens at the top and the inside turns to olive-brown powder. |
FAQ
Common questions
Do destroying angels look like puffballs?
Their unopened eggs do. Both can be small white balls on the forest floor, and only a cut from top to bottom shows the difference.
When is a gem-studded puffball no longer white inside?
As the spores mature, the flesh turns yellowish, then olive-brown and powdery, and a pore opens at the top.
Sources
Where these facts come from
- Amanita bisporigera
MushroomExpert.com
- Lycoperdon perlatum
MushroomExpert.com
- Destroying Angel
Missouri Department of Conservation
- Amanita phalloides Mushroom Poisonings, Northern California, December 2016
CDC, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report
Keep checking
Read both pages in full
- More on the destroying angel
- More on the gem-studded puffball
- Not sure it is either? Narrow it down with the identification key
This page states what field guides record. It is not advice to eat, taste or handle anything, and a photo cannot settle edibility. If someone has eaten a wild mushroom that may be toxic, call poison control (1-800-222-1222 in the US) right away, before symptoms start: the deadliest species act hours later.
More comparisons
Agaricus bisporus
Photo coming
Button mushroom vs destroying angel
- Deadly: Destroying Angel
Button mushroom gills are pink to brown with a brown print. A destroying angel keeps white gills, prints white and has a cup at the base.
American Caesar's mushroom vs destroying angel
- Deadly: Destroying Angel
Both start as white eggs in a white cup. Sliced top to bottom, a Caesar's egg is orange and yellow inside; a destroying angel's is white throughout.
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