Peter Roberts

Just came across this – only six years late! The genus Exidiopsis awaits a DNA-based revision and is a bit of a mystery at the moment. I suspect we have many more species in the UK than there are names currently available. On the continent “Exidiopsis calcea” is the name given to a species that grows on dead attached branches of conifers (largely spruce) – as illustrated in Fungi of Switzerland. I have seen it in Germany and elsewhere where it is conspicuous and probably common. I have never seen this taxon in the UK, where our “Exidiopsis calcea” grows on dead attached branches and twigs of deciduous trees and shrubs – usually decorticated. It seems fond of garden shrubs like buddleia and flowering currant and is common, but not so conspicuous. Which of these two represents Persoon’s original species is moot. Our “Exidiopsis calcea” is packed with fine mineral matter and tends to turn patchily brownish wih age – but there may well be more than one species involved, since spore size is rather variable and some collections have quite prominent cystidia-like elements in the hymenium. File it away as Exidiopsis cf. calcea until we know better – or just pretend you never saw it!