Postia tephroleuca
Description
Postia tephroleuca is a species of fungus in the family Fomitopsidaceae infecting broad-leaved trees, typically beech and plane. It is a tinder fungus with sessile or outstretched-reclined fruiting bodies, widely attached, half or fan-shaped with a narrowed base, white, cream, grayish, with a very thin skin. The edge is blunt at first, becomes thinner with age, somewhat darker than the rest of the surface. The flesh is white, soft, juicy, and tastes sweet or sour (but not bitter). The hymenophore is white or yellowish, with slightly split pores in mature specimens. It grows on dead coniferous and deciduous wood in single specimens or small groups from separate fruiting bodies. It is difficult to distinguish from other white species from the genus Postia and Tyromyces.
Common names: Greyling Bracket.
Mushroom Identification
Fruiting Bodies
Spread out-bent or have the appearance of sitting side caps.
Caps
1 - 4 cm long, 2 - 8 cm wide, 1 - 2 cm thick, semicircular, fan-shaped, widely attached to the substrate, initially fleshy, watery, later hardening. The surface of the caps is radial-fibrous, hairy-fibrous, with age naked, wrinkled when dry, ashy-gray, cream, at the base sometimes lighter, whitish, near, near the edge darker. The edge is blunt, thin with age, darker than the surface of the cap.
Hymenophore
Tubes 3 to 8 mm long, thin-walled, soft at first, later hard, white or yellowish. Pores with a diameter of 0.15 - 0.6 mm, first rounded or elongated, later tortuous or irregular in shape, with a solid, jagged or torn edge, density 4 - 6 per 1 mm.
Spores
4-6 * 1-7.5 μm, cylindrical, slightly curved, often with 2 polar droplets, colorless.
Spore Print
White.
Flesh
3 - 10 mm thick, initially fleshy, watery, soft, sweet or sour, later brittle, hard, indistinctly zonal at the cut.
Habitat and Distribution
Grow on fallen trunks, fallen branches and stumps of coniferous and deciduous trees, individually and in groups. Causes white rot of wood.
Synonyms
Polyporus tephroleucus Fr., 1821
Boletus tephroleucus (Fr.) Spreng., 1827
Bjerkandera tephroleuca (Fr.) P. Karst., 1882
Leptoporus tephroleucus (Fr.) Quél., 1886
Polystictus tephroleucus (Fr.) Bigeard & H. Guill., 1913
Tyromyces tephroleucus (Fr.) Donk, 1933
Spongiporus tephroleucus (Fr.) A. David, 1980
Oligoporus tephroleucus (Fr.) Gilb. & Ryvarden, 1985
Polyporus lacteus Fr., 1821
Polyporus elatinus Berk., 1854
Bjerkandera melina P. Karst., 1887
Bjerkandera simulans P. Karst., 1888
Bjerkandera cinerata P. Karst., 1890
Polyporus tokyoensis Lloyd, 1915
Polyporus tokyvensis Lloyd, 1915
Polyporus linearisporus Velen., 1922
Photo sources:
Photo 1 - Author: Jerzy Opioła (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Photo 2 - Author: Jerzy Opiola (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Photo 3 - Author: Jerzy Opioła (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Photo 4 - Author: Jerzy Opiola (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Photo 5 - Author: Strobilomyces (CC BY-SA 4.0)