The BioFiles - Bill Hubick

Coral Tooth Fungus (Hericium coralloides)

Source: Wikipedia

Hericium coralloides
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Basidiomycota
Class: Agaricomycetes
Order: Russulales
Family: Hericiaceae
Genus: Hericium
Species:
H. coralloides
Binomial name
Hericium coralloides
(Scop.) Pers.
Hericium coralloides
View the Mycomorphbox template that generates the following list
Teeth on hymenium
No distinct cap
Hymenium attachment is not applicable
Lacks a stipe
Spore print is white
Ecology is saprotrophic
Edibility is edible

Hericium coralloides is a saprotrophic fungus, commonly known as coral tooth fungus[1] or comb coral mushroom.[2]

Description

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The fruiting body is 4–18 centimetres (1+12–7 in) across, whitish, and heavily branched and toothed. Both the flesh and the spore print are white.[3]

Similar species

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It resembles Hericium abietis and H. erinaceus.[3]

Distribution and habitat

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It is found throughout North America, growing on dead hardwood trees. It can be found from July to October in the east and November to March in the west.[3]

Uses

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The species is edible and good[4] when young, but as it ages the branches and hanging spines become brittle and turn a light shade of yellowish brown.

References

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  1. ^ Woehrel, Mary L.; Light, William H. (2017-11-01). Mushrooms of the Georgia Piedmont and Southern Appalachians: A Reference. University of Georgia Press. ISBN 978-0-8203-5003-5.
  2. ^ Russell, Bill (2017-08-01). Field Guide to Wild Mushrooms of Pennsylvania and the Mid-Atlantic: Revised and Expanded Edition. Penn State Press. ISBN 978-0-271-08028-4.
  3. ^ a b c Audubon (2023). Mushrooms of North America. Knopf. p. 162. ISBN 978-0-593-31998-7.
  4. ^ Phillips, Roger (2010). Mushrooms and Other Fungi of North America. Buffalo, NY: Firefly Books. p. 327. ISBN 978-1-55407-651-2.