Candy Cap
Lactarius rubidus · Family Russulaceae · Updated October 2026
357US records
10states
Janbusiest month
357 US records since 1931 (262 in the last 10 years)
Last seen Feb 22, 2026 (about 8 months ago) near Pasatiempo, Santa Cruz County, CA, photographed by an iNaturalist user, with the ID agreed on by other iNaturalist users (research grade). Most US records come from California, Washington and Oregon, and the busiest months are Jan, Dec and Feb. (Data as of October 26, 2026; records can lag by weeks.)
⚠ Never eat a wild mushroom based on this site. We show where fungi have been recorded, nothing more. We never say any mushroom is edible or safe, and you shouldn't decide that from any website, app or photo. Many deadly mushrooms look like harmless ones. If someone may have eaten a wild mushroom, call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222 right away.
Lookalike warning. Many mushrooms, including deadly ones, closely resemble each other, and the only reliable identification comes from an expert looking at the actual specimen (often with spore prints or microscopy). Never use a name, photo or record count on this page to decide what something is.
When it's recorded
Records by month, all years. Busiest: Jan, Dec, Feb.
Where it's recorded
Top counties
- Marin County, CA (53) · latest Jan 29, 2026
- Mendocino County, CA (42) · latest Feb 14, 2026
- San Mateo County, CA (40) · latest Jan 7, 2026
- Sonoma County, CA (35) · latest Feb 15, 2026
- Santa Cruz County, CA (32) · latest Feb 22, 2026
- Contra Costa County, CA (27) · latest Jan 4, 2026
- Alameda County, CA (27) · latest Jan 15, 2026
- Humboldt County, CA (23) · latest Mar 30, 2024
- Monterey County, CA (8) · latest Feb 2, 2025
- Pierce County, WA (8) · latest Dec 28, 2025
More on this species from GBIF.
Bring along
🍄
Regional mushroom field guideSee on Amazon🍄
Folding mushroom knife with brushSee on Amazon🍄
Wicker foraging basketSee on Amazon🍄
10x hand lens / loupeSee on Amazon🍄
Spore print paperSee on AmazonAs an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.