Pigskin Poison Puffball
(Scleroderma citrinum)
Pigskin Fleeing
Keep that pigskin poison mushroom away from me!
Pigskin Poison Puffball sculpture by "Wildman"
Pigskin Poison Puffball
sculpture, acrylic paint
by "Wildman"
Description

This thick-skinned, beige mushroom, rounded but flattened, 3/4 to 1-5/8 inches across, is not a true puffball, but an earthball. The generic name, Scleroderma, is also that of a skin disease. It refers to the mushroom's warty surface.
Pigskin Poison Puffballs
Pigskin Poison Puffballs
photo by "Wildman"
When you cut this earthball open, it begins white, but soon turns purplish-black, and it's always hard. When mature, the powdery spores become blackish-brown.

Look-Alikes

True puffballs are soft and white inside. Other earthball species (Scleroderma species), which are also poisonous, lack the warty skin.
Smooth Earthball
Smooth Earthball (S. cepa)
This upended mushroom exposes the white mycelium that makes up the body of the fungus.
photo by "Wildman"
Smooth Earthball, Cut Open
Smooth Earthball (S. cepa), cut open
This very young specimen hasn't turned purple-black inside yet.
photo by "Wildman"

Habitat

This mushroom is common, sometimes growing in groups, in the woods, on sandy soil, and in wood chips, throughout North America

Season

You can find pigskin poison puffballs from early summer to late fall.

Edibility
Illness
This poisonous mushroom and its relatives cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, sweating, and chills. Looking at the bright side, it won't kill you!

Nevertheless, people have used it to adulterate truffles! These underground mushrooms (burrowing or digging mammals eat truffles and spread the spores in their droppings) are so flavorful and hard to get at, they're the world's most expensive fungi. And victims don't always suspect that their illness stems from eating such prized mushrooms!

On This Page: Description, Look-Alikes Habitat, Season, Edibility

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