Fungus Fact Friday

Tagged: toothed

mushrooms with a toothed fungus morphology

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Fungus Fact

#225: Radulodon copelandii, The Asian Beauty

Have you seen Radulodon copelandii?  If you live in the Boston, New York, Pittsburg, or Washington DC areas, you probably have.  If you live elsewhere on the East Coast of North America, get ready to.  R. copelandii is a distinctive fungus that produces a mat of whitish teeth along the surface of recently dead broadleaf trees, usually oaks.  The mushroom recently arrived on the continent from Asia, which gives the mushroom its common name, “Asian Beauty.”  The Japanese names for the mushroom are “Sagari haritaki” and “hanging needle mushroom.”  R. copelandii is currently spreading in eastern North America and is quickly becoming one of the most common mushrooms within its range.  This is concerning, so the species warrants further study and monitoring – hopefully by people like you!

#031: Mushroom Morphology: Toothed Fungi 0

Fungus Fact

#031: Mushroom Morphology: Toothed Fungi

As you might suspect, toothed fungi are defined by a hymenium (spore surface) that consists of spines or teeth. On larger mushrooms this ends up looking something like a bunch of hedgehog quills stuck onto the bottom of a mushroom.  These teeth are always oriented straight down, perpendicular to the ground.  They are also always tapered to a point.  These two characteristics ensure that falling spores do not land on the spines as they fall.  Aside from these two characteristics, the toothed fungi can form a variety of different shapes.  One of the most commonly eaten toothed fungi, Hydnum repandum (commonly known as the “Hedgehog Mushroom”), has a pileus and central stipe that is reminiscent of a classic “mushroom” or toadstool.  Others, like Steccherinum ochraceum, lie flat against their substrate (resupinate) and produce small teeth.  Sometimes resupinate fungi make teeth that are little more than bumps on their hymenium.  Some...