Fragrant Bracket Fungus

Posted on March 16, 2019 by tspuckler

While on a hike in Cleveland Lakefront Nature Preserve, I noticed a fair number of these white organisms.

Looking at its Latin Name, Trametes suaveolens, Trametes means “one who is thin,” while suaveolens means “sweet-smelling” in reference to the anise scent of fresh specimens.

It is found mainly on living or dead broad-leaved trees – usually Poplar and Willow. This fungi is known as a polypore; a type that forms fruiting bodies with pores or tubes on the underside.

Most polypores inhabit tree trunks or branches while consuming the wood. They play a very significant role in nutrient cycling and carbon dioxide production of forest ecosystems.

Bracket Fungus is also known as Shelf Fungus, because they produce shelf- or bracket-shaped fruiting bodies called conks. Most of the fungus is hidden from view within the body of the tree and it consists of an extensive network of filamentous threads.

Seeing these fungi on an otherwise dreary day added some brightness to the woodland environment where they reside.

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Orange Mycena

Posted on November 17, 2018 by tspuckler

In the dark, damp swamps of southern Illinois, this fun fungus really stands out. Its bright orange coloration can be noticed from a distance.

Though their caps are rather small (usually less than an inch), because they are typically found in clusters, Orange Mycena make for an eye-catching addition to the environment.

This mushroom tends to grow on deciduous logs, which contain the moisture it needs to thrive. When handled, its orange pigment may stain your skin.

Their brilliant hue fades as the mushrooms mature and the surface of the caps are sticky, especially in damp situations.

Orange Mycena is a North American species and has been reported throughout the eastern and central United States and Canada.

This striking and colorful mushroom provides the same service as many others – breaking down and digesting organic matter and in doing so, returning nutrients to the soil.

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Brown Russula

Posted on July 15, 2018 by tspuckler

While hiking in Hinckley Reservation, it was hard not to notice this large-capped mushroom that in some cases seemed to be turning itself inside-out.

Not only is it interesting looking, this organism has a waxy, benzaldehyde odor, kind of like a maraschino cherry.

These, like many fungi, are mycorrhizal, meaning they have are a symbiotic (mutually beneficial) relationship with plants. The mushroom has fibers that surround a tree rootlets.

The mushroom fiber’s helps the tree absorb water and nutrients while the tree provides sugars and amino acids to the mushroom. It is estimated that about 85% of plants depend on mycorrhizal relationships with fungi.

Brown Russula’s 4-inch cap becomes broadly convex or flat, and sometimes even gets a shallow central depression (in this case holding water).

This was a fun fungi find on a summertime walk through the woods.

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Jack-O-Lantern Mushroom

Posted on October 28, 2017 by tspuckler

While visiting southern Illinois, it was hard not to notice this organism that often produces its fruiting bodies in abundance this time of year in large clusters on old rotting stumps of hardwood trees.

It may get its name bacause it’s bright orange, like the pumpkins used to make Jack-O-Lanterns. However, there’s another reason for its common name. This fungus actually glows in the dark! Not the whole fungus, but just the gills on the underside of the mushroom.

The yellow-orange to orange cap is first convex in shape, becoming flat and then finally funnel-shaped with a margin that turns downward.

To further add to the Halloween image, Jack-O-Lantern Mushrooms are a trick, not a treat. People sometimes eat Jack O’Lanterns thinking they are Chanterelles, which are edible. The two types of mushroom can look pretty similar, and they bloom at the same time, but unlike Chanterelles, these are distasteful.

Eating a Jack-O-Lantern Mushroom won’t kill you. Nevertheless, it’s nice to look at, cool because it glows in the dark and useful because it performs a valuable function that only fungus can do, which is break down dead wood into useable components to be recycled into the forest.

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Hapalopilus croceus

Posted on July 22, 2017 by tspuckler

While hiking in the Cuyahoga River Valley, I noticed the orange glow of Hapalopilus croceus (this fungus has no common name) displaying its brilliant color.

I have never encountered (or heard of) this organism before, so it was an unexpected find. This is a rather uncommon fungus found in Asia, Europe, Oceania, and North America. Hapalopilus croceus is nationally red-listed (threatened) in 11 European countries.

When fresh, this mushroom has a vibrant orange color, but it tends to fade or brown with age. This conspicuous wood-inhabiting fungus has habitat confined to wooded meadows and pastures.

The stalkless, broadly attached, fan-shaped fruiting body has a colorful cap and grows on decaying broadleaf wood, especially fallen Oaks.

Like its polypore relatives, Hapalopilus croceus contributes a crucial role in nature’s continuous rebirth, by breaking down dead wood and turning it into useful nutrients.

Fungi digest their food outside their bodies by releasing enzymes into the surrounding environment and converting organic matter into a form they can absorb; nothing else is able to perform the function of reducing dead wood back down into soil.

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False Turkey Tail Mushroom

Posted on March 18, 2017 by tspuckler

Like the “true” Turkey Tail, this has a colorful, somewhat fuzzy cap which displays patterns of brown, red, orange, buff and green.

The stemless fruiting body is shell-like, tough and inedible. It grows on tree bark. This fungus is native to North America, where it is widespread and grows all year round.

Both Turkey Tail and False Turkey Tail are highly variable in appearance and look strikingly similar. So how do you tell them apart? The answer can be found by looking at the underside of the cap. Turkey’s Tail has tiny holes for its spore tubes, while False Turkey Tail has a smooth to slightly wrinkly underside with no visible holes.

While an imposter, False Turkey Tail Mushroom plays a crucial role in woodlands by breaking down dead wood, recycling nutrients back into the soil and creating space for new growth.

It also provides color to woodlands on Winter days.

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Bitter Oyster

Posted on February 4, 2017 by tspuckler

Bitter Oyster is a widely distributed fungus that is also known as Luminescent Panellus, Stiptic Fungus, or Astringent Panus. It is more common in eastern North America than in the west. It frequently grows in groups, residing in dense forests. It is often found on logs, stumps and trunks of deciduous trees such as Birch, Oak and Beech.

This little mushroom has reportedly been used as a styptic (blood thickening) agent. It is a relatively common species that is prevalent Spring through Fall (it can also be found in Winter in warm climates, or during Winter warm spells in temperate areas).

Bitter Oyster is an unassuming fungus by day. It forms waves of soft beige shelves and blends in with its surroundings. The edges of the mushroom cap have small rounded teeth that are curved inward. But at night things change; its gills, under their own power, glow – a characteristic known as bioluminescence.

The luminescent glow of this and other fungi inspired the term “foxfire,” coined by early settlers in eastern and southern North America. Although generally very dim, in some cases foxfire is bright enough to read by. Bitter Oyster is a pretty cool organism that often goes unnoticed in today’s world.

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Crowded Parchment Fungus

Posted on January 7, 2017 by tspuckler

While taking a Winter walk in Cuyahoga Valley National Park, this bright fungus caught my eye.

Its distinguishing features include orange coloration and often being found crowded on the dead twigs, branches and stumps of deciduous trees from July through January.

The fruiting bodies of look like fans, with tiny ripple patterns on the them. They are about three quarters of an inch wide, project sideways from branches, logs, and stumps, and may fuse together, side by side.

This is the most common parchment fungus and unlike mushrooms, it grows without a stalk. The key role of these forest recyclers is to break down dead matter and return nutrients to the soil to become available to plants once again.

The function of fungi in breaking down dead wood is crucial. Wood is so tough that animals cannot digest it. However, certain fungi are able to biodegrade it using enzymes, allowing the vast amounts of dead wood in woodlands to be broken down.

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Lion’s Mane Mushroom

Posted on December 10, 2016 by tspuckler

While hiking in Brecksville Reservation, I caught sight of a grapefriut-sized odd looking fungus that I’ve never seen before. It usually grows alone or in pairs, fruiting from the wounds of living trees (especially oaks) in late Summer and Fall.

Native to North America, Europe and Asia, it can be identified by its icicle-like projections, its appearance on hardwoods and its tendency to grow a single clump of dangling spines.

About a dozen studies have been published on the neuroregenerative properties of Lion’s Mane Mushroom since 1991; tests have confirmed that it stimulates nerve regeneration.

This historical Chinese medicine is developing a following in the world of modern smart drugs. It is also very tasty to eat.

Like all fungi, Lion’s Mane Mushroom is a vital decomposer in the ecosystem, breaking down dead organisms and biological waste and freeing nutrients for use by other organisms.

This mushroom has a variety of common names, including Bearded Tooth, Old Man’s Beard, Satyr’s Beard, Monkey Head, Bear’s Head, Sheep’s Head, Hedgehog Fungus, Tree Hedgehog and Pom Pom.

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Fan-shaped Jelly Fungus

Posted on September 24, 2016 by tspuckler

It has been rather rainy as of late and the ground is soggy, the air is heavy with humidity – these days are good days to look for fungi.

This decaying tree branch had fallen to the forest floor in Cuyahoga Valley National Park. The bright yellow-orange coloration on it caught my eye. Fan-shaped Jelly Fungus enjoys a practically worldwide distribution.

It has a rubbery texture and lack of gills and is a specialist for growing out of cracks in dead wood, which it feeds on and breaks down into components that can be recycled back into the earth – without this process, wood and other plant matter would not decompose.

The fruiting bodies are less than 7/8 of an inch tall and grow in clusters or rows along cracks in decaying wood; often the wood has lost its bark. Each fruiting body has a curved fan-like shape, thin in cross-section and widening toward the top. They are translucent and bright in color, and are gelatinous to the touch.

In our modern-day, decomposition and decay are often viewed quite negatively, yet they are the yin to the yang of growth, and together they form two halves of the whole that is the closed-loop cycle of natural ecosystems. In Chinese culture, it is called literally “sweet osmanthus ear,” referring to its similarity in appearance to that flower.

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Category Archives: Fungi

Fragrant Bracket Fungus

Orange Mycena

Brown Russula

Jack-O-Lantern Mushroom

Hapalopilus croceus

False Turkey Tail Mushroom

Bitter Oyster

Crowded Parchment Fungus

Lion’s Mane Mushroom

Fan-shaped Jelly Fungus