Saprobic fungi grow on rotting stems and branches in damp places on the forest floor, generally buried under leaf litter or in the soil.
Cup-shaped fruiting bodies are usually produced during the colder months of winter and early spring. The inside of the cup is a brilliant red from which the common name and scientific name come froma contrast to the lighter colored exterior.
The feasibility of fruiting bodies is well established, but their small size, abundant hard texture and not much fruit will prevent most people from gathering a table.
Mushrooms have been used medicinally by Oneida Native Americans, and also as a colorful component of table decorations in England. In other parts of Russia, where fruits are more often consumed in salads, fried with smetana or simply used as a coled dressing for food.
Molliardiomyces eucoccinea is the name given to an imperfect form of the fungus that does not have a stage of sexual reproduction in its life cycle. Link mushroom