Royoporus badius

Description

Royoporus badius, also known as the black-footed polypore, is a species of fungus found in temperate regions across Asia, Australia, Europe, and North America. It is known for causing white rot in hardwoods and conifers. This distinctive fungus features a dark brown or reddish-brown cap, which can reach a diameter of up to 9.84 inches (25 cm), and a stem that is often black at the top and black or brown at the base, giving it its common name. Large specimens of this fungus are easily identifiable due to its unique appearance.

The cap of Royoporus badius can be circular, kidney-shaped, or have a wavy edge. As it matures, the cap changes from convex to flat or funnel-shaped and develops wrinkles on its upper surface. The stem, which can be centrally or laterally attached to the cap, is velvety, dark brown to blackish-brown, and becomes more wrinkled with age. Unfortunately, these fungi are inedible due to their tough texture.

The spores of Royoporus badius are ellipsoid or cylindrical, translucent, and relatively small. The fungus has a unique hyphal construction, resulting in hard and woody tissue. It is a saprobic species, meaning it feeds on dead organic matter, causing white rot. It grows on the trunks and branches of various hardwood tree genera and is commonly found in temperate regions of Asia, Europe, and North America.

Common names: Black-Footed Polypore, Black-Leg.

Mushroom Identification

1. Cap

   The cap can vary in size from 1.57 to 9.84 inches (4 to 25 cm) or more. It is typically round or kidney-shaped, sometimes with a lobed outline. The cap is dry, often dark reddish-brown to dark brown, sometimes pale with a reddish-brown center. It darkens with age and may show streaks.

2. Pore Surface

   The pore surface runs down the stem, starting white and becoming dingy whitish to brownish with age. It doesn't bruise when damaged, and the pores initially look "stuffed" but later become tiny and circular.

3. Stem

   The stem can be central, off-center, or lateral. It ranges from 0.39 to 1.57 inches (1 to 4 cm) in length and 0.20 to 0.79 inches (0.5 to 2 cm) in width. It is dry, with a pale apex and a dark brown to black, velvety lower part. The stem is tough.

4. Flesh

   The flesh is white, remains unchanged when sliced, and is very tough.

5. Odor and Taste

   It has no distinctive odor and a slightly mealy or non-distinctive taste.

6. Spore Print

   The spore print is white, but it can be challenging to obtain.

7. Habitat

   It grows on dead hardwood trees (sometimes on conifers), usually after the bark has decayed. It causes white rot and can be found in various seasons. Originally described in Germany, it's widely distributed in North America, Europe, Asia, Oceania, and South America.

8. Microscopic Features

   The spores are subcylindrical, smooth, and hyaline in KOH. Hymenial cystidia are not present. The hyphal system is dimitic, consisting of generative and skeletal hyphae. Clamp connections are not found.

History

This mushroom species was discovered by a scientist named Christian Hendrik Persoon in 1801, and he called it Boletus badius. Later, in 1832, an American mycologist named Lewis David de Schweinitz moved it to the Polyporus group. It stayed under this name until 1997 when De Schweinitz moved it to a new group called Royoporus, which he had created the year before.

Some other mushrooms in the Polyporaceae family that are similar to R. badius include P. dictyopus, P. melanopus, and P. tubaeformis. They have something called "clamp connections" on their generative hyphae and live in similar environments. Zmitrovich & Kovalenko suggested a new group called Picipes for this fungus, along with P. melanopus and P. tubaeformis. According to Species Fungorum, the correct name for this mushroom is now Picipes badius.

The name "badius" comes from the Latin word "badi-," which means "reddish-brown."

Synonyms and Varieties

• Boletus badius Persoon (1801), Synopsis methodica fungorum, p. 523 (Basionyme) Sanctionnement : Fries (1821)

• Boletus batschii J.F.Gmel. (1792)

• Boletus durus Timm (1788), Florae megapolitanae prodomus, p. 271

• Boletus perennis Batsch (1783), Elenchus fungorum, p. 103

• Boletus variegatus Sowerby (1802), Coloured figures of English fungi or mushrooms, tab. 368

• Fomes variegatus (Sowerby) Cooke (1885), Grevillea, 14(69), p. 21

• Grifola badia (Persoon) Gray (1821), A natural arrangement of British plants, 1, p. 644

• Leucoporus picipes (Fries) Quélet (1886), Enchiridion fungorum in Europa media et praesertim in Gallia vigentium, p. 165

• Melanopus picipes (Fries) Patouillard (1887), Les hyménomycètes d'Europe, anatomie générale et classification des champignons supérieurs, p. 137

• Melanopus varius ss. Bourdot & Galzin (1925), Bulletin de la Société mycologique de France, 41(1), p. 110

• Microporus mollis Patouillard (1909), Bulletin de la Société mycologique de France, 25(1), p. 4

• Peziza conchata Paulet (1808) [1793], Traité des champignons, 2, p. 397, tab. 184, fig. 3

• Picipes badius (Pers.) Zmitr. & Kovalenko (2016)

• Placodes variegatus (Sowerby) Quélet (1886), Enchiridion fungorum in Europa media et praesertim in Gallia vigentium, p. 172

• Polyporellus badius (Pers.) Imazeki (1989)

• Polyporellus picipes (Fries) P. Karsten (1879), Meddelanden af societas pro fauna et flora fennica, 5, p. 37

• Polyporus badius (Persoon) Schweinitz (1832), Transactions of the American philosophical Society, series 2, 4(2), p. 155

• Polyporus dibaphus Berkeley & M.A. Curtis (1872), Grevillea, 1(3), p. 36

• Polyporus durus (Timm) Kreisel (1984), Boletus, SchrReihe, 1, p. 30

• Polyporus nigripes Wallroth (1833), Flora cryptogamica germaniae, 2, p. 598 (nom. illegit.)

• Polyporus picipes Fries (1838) [1836-38], Epicrisis systematis mycologici, p. 440

• Polyporus variegatus (Sowerby) Fries (1838) [1836-38], Epicrisis systematis mycologici, p. 470

• Polyporus varius var. γconvolutus Persoon (1825), Mycologia europaea, seu complet omnium fungorum in variis europaeae regionibus detectorum enumeratio, 2, p. 52

• Royoporus badius (Persoon) A.B. De (1997), Mycotaxon, 65, p. 471

Video

Photo copyright:

All photos were taken by the Ultimate Mushroom team and can be used for your own purposes under the Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International license.