(CNN) – Health officials in California are warning people to stop eating wild mushrooms.
Four people have died and dozens more have fallen ill since November because California is home to two highly toxic mushrooms.
One of them is called the death cap mushroom. It looks very similar to safe to eat mushrooms found in grocery stores. It also looks like mushrooms commonly found in other countries that are safe to eat.
Rain came early this season, compounding the issue by causing perfect growth conditions for death cap mushrooms.
Foraging for wild mushrooms saw a spike in popularity during the COVID pandemic.
In a typical year, California sees five or fewer cases of mushroom poisoning.
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