Bracket fungi ID

[Deborah]

Hello.

This beautiful bracket was on a rotten stump – oak and beech are the two trees present, in very damp wooded valley.

I have no clue how to begin to ID this? I thought that as the colours were so distinctive I’d be able to get there with a few books!

Any help appreciated as ever.

[Cogubelo]

Hello,

It looks like in those are Trametis versicolor, they can have some really cool colour combos.

[Lancashire Lad]

I’d agree with Trametes versicolor as a possibility, and also Bjerkandera adusta.

Both of those species can be remarkably diverse regards the colouration and banding of the upper surface of the brackets, and it can be very difficult, when looking only at the upper surface, to decide between the two.

Individual caps of T.versicolor can be up to ~10cm across, whereas those of B.adusta are usually no more than ~6-7cm across.

The underside of the brackets (the fertile, spore bearing surface) of each species is visibly different: –

T.versicolor – mostly white with 3-6 pores per mm.

B.adusta – mostly grey, with 6-7 pores per mm.

And the spores of the two species are markedly different: –

T.versicolor – 4-6 x 1.5-2.5µ – allantoid (sausage shaped).

B.adusta – 4.5-5.5 x 2.5-3µ – ellipsoid.

Regards,

Mike.

[Deborah]

Thanks both of you.

The caps were each about 10cm diameter. A stunning looking fungus!

[Author]

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