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Teonanácatl-type mushroom

Psilocybe mexicana

Hymenogastraceae // fruiting bodies · sclerotia

Also known as: pajaritos; one of several sacred mushrooms

Safety warning on record — see SafetyLegal status varies by jurisdiction — see Legal

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Uses & evidence

Uses and evidence recorded
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Preparation

No preparation information recorded

Safety

Safety cautions recorded
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Research

No linked research on file
Open research →

Overview

Plant parts

fruiting bodies, sclerotia

Known constituents

psilocybin, psilocin

Research corpus coverage

Ethnobotanical / entheogenicPet safety

Chemistry notes

  • Principal reported constituents include psilocybin, psilocin; broad class: serotonergic psychedelic tryptamines.

Uses & Evidence

Traditional / historical use

Documented traditional use — not a claim of established efficacy.

No traditional-use records in this corpus.

Modern evidence

  • Mazatec mushroom ceremonies use multiple Psilocybe species; teonanácatl cannot always be assigned to one species.

    MODERATE · Psychoactive and other ceremonial plants from a 2,000-year-old Maya ritual deposit at Yaxnohcah, Mexico

    Identity/attribution caution.

Safety

Human

  • High risk

    Safety severity is HIGH: acute anxiety, confusion, accidents; rare prolonged psychiatric effects; mushroom misidentification can be fatal

    Misidentification · HIGH · Drugs of Abuse: A DEA Resource Guide, 2024 Edition

Cats

  • Caution

    The page groups Psilocybe species among mushrooms containing psilocybin and psilocin; ingestion produces acute central nervous system toxicosis that is generally self-limiting and not life-threatening, with recovery reported within 6–12 hours.

    Intrinsic toxicity · OTHER · whole mushroom; preparation not specified · MODERATE · veterinary_manual · Overview of Mushrooms Toxic to Animals - Toxicology

Dogs

  • Caution

    The page groups Psilocybe species among mushrooms containing psilocybin and psilocin; ingestion produces acute central nervous system toxicosis that is generally self-limiting and not life-threatening, with recovery reported within 6–12 hours.

    Intrinsic toxicity · OTHER · whole mushroom; preparation not specified · MODERATE · veterinary_manual · Overview of Mushrooms Toxic to Animals - Toxicology

Cats & dogs

  • High risk

    The page describes psilocybin or hallucinogenic mushrooms as neurotoxic after ingestion, causing neurologic abnormalities and potentially affecting the kidneys and liver.

    Intrinsic toxicity · OTHER · whole mushroom; private stash, including mushrooms mixed with chocolate or other flavoring substances · MODERATE · veterinary_hospital_guidance · Mushroom Toxicity

Additional safety notes (general, unstructured)

Free-text safety notes carried from their source — not broken out by species, route, or hazard type, and not equivalent to the structured records above. Each note names the kind of source it came from.

  • Safety severity is HIGH: acute anxiety, confusion, accidents; rare prolonged psychiatric effects; mushroom misidentification can be fatal

    HIGH · Drugs of Abuse: A DEA Resource Guide, 2024 Edition

  • The page describes psilocybin or hallucinogenic mushrooms as neurotoxic after ingestion, causing neurologic abnormalities and potentially affecting the kidneys and liver.

    MODERATE · veterinary_hospital_guidance · Mushroom Toxicity

    The page discusses psilocybin mushrooms as a group and does not specifically identify Psilocybe mexicana.

  • The page groups Psilocybe species among mushrooms containing psilocybin and psilocin; ingestion produces acute central nervous system toxicosis that is generally self-limiting and not life-threatening, with recovery reported within 6–12 hours.

    MODERATE · veterinary_manual · Overview of Mushrooms Toxic to Animals - Toxicology

    The page names Psilocybe spp. but does not specifically identify Psilocybe mexicana or provide cat-specific clinical data.

  • The page groups Psilocybe species among mushrooms containing psilocybin and psilocin; ingestion produces acute central nervous system toxicosis that is generally self-limiting and not life-threatening, with recovery reported within 6–12 hours.

    MODERATE · veterinary_manual · Overview of Mushrooms Toxic to Animals - Toxicology

    The page names Psilocybe spp. but does not specifically identify Psilocybe mexicana.

Preparation × species risk matrix

Unknown means insufficient evidence was located — not that a form is safe.

Cats

  • whole herbHigh risk
  • tinctureCaution
  • concentrated extractUnknown
  • essential oilUnknown
  • glyceriteUnknown
  • infused oilUnknown
  • salveUnknown
  • smoke/combustionUnknown
  • tea/infusionUnknown

Dogs

  • whole herbHigh risk
  • tinctureCaution
  • concentrated extractUnknown
  • essential oilUnknown
  • glyceriteUnknown
  • infused oilUnknown
  • salveUnknown
  • smoke/combustionUnknown
  • tea/infusionUnknown

Identity

  • Synonym

    GBIF lists Psilocybe armandii Guzmán & S.H.Pollock as a taxonomic synonym of Psilocybe mexicana.

    HIGH · GBIF Species Synonyms API

Common name

pajaritos; one of several sacred mushrooms

Traditions

Mazatec veladas and broader Mesoamerican historical contexts

Oaxaca and Mesoamerica // pre-Columbian iconographic/textual debate; well-documented 20th-century living tradition // living tradition

  • Ethnobotanical

    Teonanácatl-type mushroom is documented in Mazatec veladas and broader Mesoamerican historical contexts in Oaxaca and Mesoamerica for night healing/divinatory ceremony.

    HIGH · Psychoactive and other ceremonial plants from a 2,000-year-old Maya ritual deposit at Yaxnohcah, Mexico

  • Ritual

    Documented functions include healing, divinatory, visionary, spirit-contact; these functions are tradition-specific and should not be generalized across cultures.

    HIGH · Psychoactive and other ceremonial plants from a 2,000-year-old Maya ritual deposit at Yaxnohcah, Mexico

Sources

Research records are source-linked but may not yet be editorially reviewed.