Fungus Fact Friday

Category: Fungus Fact

Trametes versicolor 0

Fungus Fact

#065: Trametes versicolor, The Turkey Tail

In honor of the recent Thanksgiving holiday, I chose to rework this post on the Turkey Tail. I will continue discussing mycotoxins next week. It is easy to see why Trametes versicolor is commonly called the “Turkey Tail”: the upper surface of the fan-shaped polypore sports rings of color that vary from gray to brown to reddish-orange. In fresh specimens, the edge of the mushroom is white, making it look remarkably like the displayed tail of a wild turkey. T. versicolor is a very common decomposer and produces mushrooms that are visible all year, so you can probably find it the next time you walk through the woods.

Fusarium head blight 1

Fungus Fact

#203: Deoxynivalenol

Deoxynivalenol (DON) is a toxin found in grains infected with the fungus Fusarium graminearum and other Fusarium species. It is often called “vomitoxin” because it primarily causes vomiting in humans and livestock. Its long-term effects are mild, but it is still a very important mycotoxin because it is the most common mycotoxin found in food.

Aspergillus flavus 3

Fungus Fact

#202: Aflatoxins

Fungi produce innumerable “mycotoxins” – compounds that are toxic to humans. In mushrooms, these cause symptoms ranging from gastrointestinal upset to death (see FFF#091–100 for more). Although these are of significant concern to mushroom hunters, their impact is relatively small. The most significant mycotoxins in terms of the number of people affected are produced by molds that naturally grow on food. Over the next few weeks, I will discuss some of the most problematic food-borne mycotoxins. Topping that list are the aflatoxins, which cause liver cancer and are especially problematic for people in developing nations.

Omphalotus illudens 1

Fungus Fact

#007: Omphalotus illudens, The Jack-O-Lantern Mushroom

If the spirit of Halloween were a mushroom, it would be Omphalotus illudens. This agaric is commonly known as the “Jack-O-Lantern mushroom” for a few good reasons. First, it is bright orange, like the pumpkins that decorate doorsteps all over the United States in October. Not only is the cap orange, but so are the gills, the stipe, and the interior. Second, the mushroom’s gills glow in the dark, especially when they are young and fresh. Furthermore, the mushroom often has a sweet smell and is poisonous. Nothing says Halloween like something that is orange, glows in the dark, smells sweet, and has a sinister side.

Xylaria polymorpha 3

Fungus Fact

#005: Xylaria polymorpha, Dead Man’s Fingers

In late October, it is not unusual to see Halloween decorations featuring bony fingers reaching up out of a grave. The natural world has its own version of this: Xylaria polymorpha, commonly known as Dead Man’s Fingers. This macabre name is an apt description of the mushrooms, which resemble burnt and dried out fingers reaching out of the ground to grab unwitting passers-by and drag them down into the depths of the earth. You can find these morbid ascomycetes on rotting logs at pretty much any time of the year.

Tremella mesenterica 2

Fungus Fact

#059 Tremella mesenterica, Witch’s Butter

One day as you check your mailbox you notice a yellow smear on the entrance to your house (for example a wooden gate). After retrieving your mail, you take a closer look and see that it’s a yellow gelatinous lobed blob – Witch’s Butter! Oh no, you think, I’ve been hexed by a witch! Knowing just what to do, you run back to the house, collect a few straight pins, and stab them through the offending substance to drain its juices and kill the spell. Unfortunately, this method doesn’t work very well for two reasons. First, this blob is actually the jelly fungus Tremella mesenterica. Like all jelly fungi, it is specifically designed to survive repeated dehydration and rehydration. Second, the main body of the fungus is still living inside the wood; unless you replace the wood, the mushroom will probably reappear in the same place!

Hygrocybe conica 0

Fungus Fact

#057: Hygrocybe conica, The Witch’s Hat

Welcome back to creepy fungus month! I’m starting off this month with a mushroom that has a creepy name but is always fun to find: The Witch’s Hat. Hygrocybe conica gets its common name from the conic shape of its cap, its orange to red color, and its tendency to bruise strongly black. Actually, this last feature is probably the most important; when the mushrooms turn completely black they really do look like tiny hats for witches! The Witch’s Hat grows on the ground in a variety of habitats and mycologists are not sure what its ecological role is.

Phaeolus schweinitzii 1

Fungus Fact

#201: Phaeolus schweinitzii, The Dyer’s Polypore

Phaeolus schweinitzii is a common polypore that parasitizes conifer trees. Around the bases of its victims, it produces medium-sized to large mushrooms in overlapping rosettes resembling haphazardly stacked dinner plates. The mushrooms are brown and fuzzy in the center and yellow around the edges. P. schweinitzii attacks the roots and lower trunk of older trees, making them more likely to fall in a storm. Although it routinely causes headaches for foresters and homeowners alike, people in the mushroom dyeing community covet this fungus. It dyes wool various shades from bright yellow to dark green, which earned it the common name “the Dyer’s Polypore.” Other common names used for P. schweinitzii are “Velvet-Top Fungus” and “Dyer’s Mazegill” (British).

Gyroporus castaneus row 3

Fungus Fact

#200: Gyroporus castaneus, The Chestnut Bolete

The most readily observable features of Gyroporus castaneus are its brown cap and small size. As any mushroom hunter knows, mushrooms with this combination of features are very hard to identify… unless your mushroom is a bolete. Only a handful of boletes are small when fully grown and most of those have a reddish cap. G. castaneus – commonly called the “Chestnut Bolete” because of its chestnut brown colors – is easy to identify thanks to its small size, light brown colors, and brittle hollow stipe. Once you’ve found a small brownish bolete, the classic test to identify it as the Chestnut Bolete is gently squeezing the stipe, which should feel hollow.

Entoloma abortivum with aborted fruitbody and honey mushrooms 0

Fungus Fact

#199: Entoloma abortivum, The Aborting Entoloma

Entoloma abortivum is a fascinating mushroom. The mushroom produces two forms of fruitbody: an agaric form that is an umbrella-like gilled mushroom and a “carpophoroid” (mycology-speak for “aborted”) form that looks like an oddly-shaped puffball. Both of these forms are usually found near honey mushrooms (Armillaria spp.) or in places honey mushrooms are known to grow. It turns out that E. abortivum is parasitic or partially parasitic on honey mushrooms; the aborted forms are actually the mycelium of E. abortivum attacking Armillaria mushrooms. Both the agaric and aborted forms are edible, although you need to be cautious when collecting Entoloma species.