# Giant Puffball (*Calvatia*)

The Giant Puffball is a big, round fungus that looks like a ball! When it's ready, it puffs out spores into the air.

- **Category:** [Fungi](https://www.snappit.app/explore/categories/fungi)
- **Rarity:** Rare
- **Danger:** 1/5 · Very low
- **Snaps:** 1
- **Habitat:** In fields and forests
- **Also known as:** Armored Puffball

![Giant Puffball](https://res.cloudinary.com/drieglelr/image/upload/v1771424405/objects/5127.jpg)

## Appearance

The Giant Puffball is a large, round, or pear-shaped fungus, typically white and smooth when young. It lacks a visible stem or gills, making it look like a huge, firm marshmallow or a soccer ball. As it matures, its white interior turns yellowish then olive-brown.

## Taxonomy

- **Kingdom:** Fungi
- **Phylum:** Basidiomycota
- **Class:** Agaricomycetes
- **Order:** Agaricales
- **Family:** Lycoperdaceae
- **Genus:** Calvatia

## Interesting facts

- Ancient people sometimes used its spores as a natural bandage for wounds!
- One puffball releases more spores than there are people on Earth!
- Some puffballs grow so fast you can almost watch them get bigger!
- You can slice and cook young puffballs like a big mushroom steak!

## Special abilities

- **Spore Cloud Burst:** Giant Puffball can release trillions of tiny, smoke-like spores when disturbed, helping them spread far and wide.
- **Rapid Growth Marvel:** Giant Puffball has the ability to grow incredibly fast, reaching massive sizes in just days to quickly reproduce.
- **Edible Transformation:** Giant Puffball can be safely eaten when its flesh is pure white and firm, offering a unique foraging experience.

## Measurements & details

- **Height:** 10-70 cm
- **Edible:** edible
- **Size:** 10-70 cm
- **Growth Substrate:** soil
- **Season:** Summer-fall
- **Spore Color:** Olive-brown

## Ecological connections

- **Eaten by:** [White-tailed Deer](https://www.snappit.app/explore/white-tailed-deer) (*Odocoileus virginianus*) — White-tailed deer sometimes browse on young, fresh puffballs.
- **Eaten by:** [Leopard Slug](https://www.snappit.app/explore/leopard-slug) (*Limax maximus*) — Leopard slugs are known to consume the soft flesh of puffball fungi.
- **Eaten by:** [Eastern Gray Squirrel](https://www.snappit.app/explore/eastern-gray-squirrel) (*Sciurus carolinensis*) — Eastern gray squirrels occasionally nibble on various types of mushrooms.

## Traits

- [Spore Producing](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/spore-producing): Spore-producing organisms reproduce by releasing small, often single-celled, reproductive units called spores.
- [Forest](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/forest): Forest habitats are terrestrial environments dominated by dense tree cover, supporting a high diversity of plant and animal life.
- [Giant](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/giant): Giant describes organisms or objects of significantly larger size than average for their species or type.

## Collections

- [Fungi](https://www.snappit.app/explore/collections/fungi)

## Safety

**Danger:** 1/5 · Very low

Do not pick or eat anything you find. Some plants and mushrooms can be harmful.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### How to identify Giant Puffball?

Compare the cap shape, the underside, the stem and base, and whether the fungus grows on wood or soil. Some fungi have gills, others pores or teeth. A cap seen only from above often hides the most useful features. Mushroom Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details.

### How tall is Giant Puffball?

10-70 cm

### Is Giant Puffball edible?

edible

### How big is Giant Puffball?

10-70 cm

### Where is Giant Puffball usually found?

In fields and forests

### What does Giant Puffball grow on?

soil

### When is Giant Puffball in season?

Summer-fall

### What color are Giant Puffball spores?

Olive-brown

## Where to spot

- [Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/cheekwood-botanical-garden-and-museum-of-art) — Tennessee, US · Botanical Garden

## More Fungi

- [Field Mushroom](https://www.snappit.app/explore/field-mushroom) (*Agaricus*)
- [Button Mushroom](https://www.snappit.app/explore/button-mushroom) (*Agaricus*)
- [Portobello Mushroom](https://www.snappit.app/explore/portobello-mushroom) (*Agaricus*)
- [Shiitake](https://www.snappit.app/explore/shiitake) (*Lentinula*)

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Source: [Giant Puffball: Facts & Places to See — Snappit](https://www.snappit.app/explore/giant-puffball)