Mystery Fungus

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British Red

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Dec 30, 2005
26,709
1,947
Mercia
I was wandering through a stream today trying to photograph a little egret when I came across something wholly unfamiliar

Clearly some sort of fungus on a very old and rotten stump - it had clearly subsumed some ivy growing on the stump (without killing it as the leaves came through)

It was all of a piece and very large (3 foot top to bottom)

Never seen anything quite like it before - any kind mycologists shed some light on it for me?

3261732472_6a1e1feb43_o.jpg


Red
 

burning

Tenderfoot
Jul 27, 2006
56
0
55
nw uk
What a beautiful pic.It reminds me of the hookah smoking caterpillar but I've had a few.
Nice find :cool:
 

British Red

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Dec 30, 2005
26,709
1,947
Mercia
Any idea what sort of tree it was Red? Or any other indicators?

So old and rotten it was impossible to tell. There were beech, ash, hawthorn, elder, birch and oak in the area. I saw both cramp balls aplenty and lots of "Jews ear" / "Jelly ear". There was no smell or spore staining

Its such a weird looking thing that I'm hoping someone recognises it!
 

xylaria

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
I guess it is a type of trametes in an immature state. Polypores are very difficult from photos as you need other information like how hard it is, what a cross section looks like, and normally the pores have to be looked closely to view size, shape and depth.
 

Tadpole

Full Member
Nov 12, 2005
2,842
21
59
Bristol
what does the underside look like? there is a picture on the net that looks like this (search Stereum subtomentosum) but the underside looks like a simple braket fungui)
 

British Red

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Dec 30, 2005
26,709
1,947
Mercia
It didn't really have an underside tadpole - it was all of a mass and a metre or so long. As you can see the apparently single body has grown up and around ivy stems.

Given there was only one I didn't want to damage it just to satisfy my curiosity by sectioning or seeing if it soloured when cut etc.

Inonotus does look similar - perhaps cuticularis rather than radiatus from size alone

Thanks all for the input
 

Shewie

Mod
Mod
Dec 15, 2005
24,259
24
48
Yorkshire
There are a couple in my books which look very similar, especially the first one ...

1. Rusty Porecrust Phellinus ferruginosus

2. Purplepore Bracket Trichaptum abietinum - hard to say if there`s any purple tinge on the underside in the photo though

Just piccys in my book though Red, my money`s on whatever Xylaria said :D
 

addo

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Feb 8, 2006
2,485
9
Derbyshire

xylaria

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
As a guess, Id go with Phellinus pomaceus http://popgen.unimaas.nl/~jlindsey/commanster/Mushrooms/Basidio/ABasidio/Phellinus.pomaceus.html just compareing the photo with one in a good book on decay fungi.
Ive got the latest book on the subject at work which has more info on individual types so i'll look it up. Often decay fungi are very specific to tree genera/species, and if they are on the main stem or base/roots.

I think you have hit on it there. Prunus species specialist, there appears to be shiny purple bark on the upper central part of the picture. The fruit body lasts the year round. It causes crumbly white heartwood decay.
 

Draven

Native
Jul 8, 2006
1,530
6
34
Scotland
Does anyone else see a really creepy obese rabbit standing upright with an evil grin, floppy ears trying to give you a hug with very short arms when they look at that fungus? :p Maybe just me...
 

British Red

M.A.B (Mad About Bushcraft)
Dec 30, 2005
26,709
1,947
Mercia
I thin that mushroom isn't the problem Draven...its those other ones :)

I'm fairly sure addo nailed it there having looked at my books

Thansk to all for the input - another thing learned :)
 

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