The Crown-tipped Coral Fungus (Artomyces pyxidatus) is an intricately branched fungus most commonly found in Eastern North America growing from dead hardwood. When fresh, the flesh is a pale white-yellow and highly branched, with each branch terminating in a distinctive crown-shaped cup adorned with 3-6 points.
The species is considered to be edible, however fruitings tend to be too small to constitute a full meal. When raw, they have a peppery taste, but this tends to fade if not disappear with cooking. I was lucky enough to come across this rather large grouping this weekend, though after taking my pictures, I opted to leave them where they were rather than harvest them.
Other than one small fruiting of oyster mushrooms, I didn't find any other edible fungi on this particular walk, but there were plenty of other non-edible fungal and slime mold species growing as well. Here are a few of the other species I came across:
Oyster Mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus):
Dryad's Saddle (Cerioporus squamosus):
Artist's Bracket (Ganoderma applanatum):
Eastern American Platterful Mushroom (Megacollybia rodmanii):
Veiled Polypore (Cryptoporus volvatus):
Blackfoot Polypore (Cerioporus leptocephalus):
False Turkeytail (Stereum ostrea):
Black Knot (Apiosporina morbosa):
Tumbling Puffball (Bovista pila):
Genus Antrodia:
Common Sunburst Lichen (Xanthoria parietina):
Chocolate Tube Slime (Stemonitis splendens):
False Puffball (Reticularia lycoperdon):
Feel free to offer your suggestions if you believe I have misidentified anything. I hope you enjoy the photos FungiLovers!
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Thanks for the ID on Megacollybia rodmanii I've seen that one a few times but never knew what it was. I would love to find a tumbling puffball someday as well. I would have eaten those crown tipped corals in a heartbeat, even just a little taste of them is worth it in a ramen noodle soup - flash boiled.
To be completely fair, the credit for that ID should go to Adam Bryant. I originally thought that it was a Fawn mushroom (Pluteus cervinus), but Adam was able to point out a few distinguishing features to show that I was incorrect. Here is a link to his inaturalist account: https://www.inaturalist.org/people/adambryant
This weekend I'm headed to Porcupine Mountain, maybe I'll see one of them around. Hopefully some black trumpets as well.
Hi tych021,
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