Meet Lanmaoa asiatica: The Mushroom That Can Make You See Little People

This is one mushroom that can leave diners seeing little people—quite literally. Indeed, Lanmaoa asiatica looks more like an ordinary dinner ingredient than a “magic mushroom.” It is a reddish bolete from southwestern China, with pores rather than gills beneath its cap. Its pale flesh can turn blue when cut or bruised, a feature also reflected in one of its Chinese market names. It belongs to the same broad mushroom family as porcini and is regularly sold and eaten in Yunnan.

The problem begins when it is eaten raw or not cooked thoroughly. Some patients report seeing crowds of tiny human figures moving through the real room around them. They may march across tables, climb furniture, gather near plates or appear under a tablecloth. Doctors describe this as a Lilliputian hallucination, a term taken from the miniature inhabitants of Lilliput in Gulliver’s Travels.

One account recorded by University of Utah researcher Colin Domnauer came from a professor in Yunnan. After eating mushrooms, the man noticed unusual colours and shapes, then saw many tiny figures marching beneath a tablecloth. He estimated that they were about two centimetres tall. This was one person’s experience, not a standard measurement, but it shows how detailed such episodes can seem to the person going through them.

Hospital studies confirm that these reports are linked to a real form of mushroom poisoning. A Chinese clinical study examined 398 patients treated after eating Lanmaoa asiatica. More than 90 percent experienced hallucinations, while delirium, dizziness and agitation were also recorded. The researchers reported no deaths and no clear signs of injury to major organs in routine tests.

A later study reviewed 81 patients admitted in 2023. Visual hallucinations were the first symptom in 69.1 percent of cases. Nausea affected 54.3 percent and vomiting 44.4 percent. Many patients also had weakness, dizziness or other digestive problems. In other words, this is not simply an unusual visual experience. It is a poisoning syndrome that can affect both the body and the mind.

The timing is another unusual part of the story. Digestive symptoms often begin within several hours, but changes in perception and behaviour may not appear until 12 to 24 hours after the meal. In the 81-patient study, most people recovered within one to five days. Even without lasting organ damage, several days of hallucinations, confusion or poor coordination can be dangerous and may require hospital treatment.

Scientists still do not know which chemical causes these effects. Lanmaoa asiatica does not appear to rely on psilocybin, the best-known chemical in many “magic mushrooms,” or on ibotenic acid, which is associated with Amanita species. A 2026 genomic study examined 53 specimens from the Lanmaoa genus and found no close match to the usual genes linked with either of those chemical systems. This suggests that the mushroom may produce a different psychoactive substance that has not yet been identified.

Researchers are approaching the question from several directions. Chemical work published in 2025 isolated four previously undescribed compounds and sixteen known ones from the fruiting bodies. Some affected inflammatory signalling in cultured cells, but none was shown to cause the hallucinations. Another study compared blood plasma from twenty poisoned patients with samples from healthy people. It found changes linked with cellular energy use and metabolism, yet it did not identify the active substance.

Domnauer and mycologist Bryn Dentinger are also studying the genus through whole-genome sequencing and field collection. Their work has helped clarify relationships among Lanmaoa species and has added new specimens for chemical testing. Research reports from the Natural History Museum of Utah also describe similar local accounts connected with mushrooms collected in the northern Philippines. DNA testing reportedly identified those samples as Lanmaoa asiatica, though the detailed Philippine findings have not yet appeared in a full peer-reviewed paper.

The safest summary is simple. Lanmaoa asiatica is an edible mushroom in local cuisine, but poor preparation can lead to serious neuropsychiatric poisoning. Reports of tiny people are supported by hospital records and research interviews, although not every patient sees the same thing and the pattern is not perfectly consistent. The active chemical, the dose needed to trigger symptoms and the way it acts in the brain are still unknown.