16 August 2008 West Sussex. Photograph copyright Leif Goodwin. Common Name Southern Bracket Fruiting Body Bracket shaped, often growing in tiers, laterally attached to the substrate, upper surface concentrically ridged, dark brown, often ochre brown from spores, underside white, 3 to 4 pores per mm, to about 60 cm wide, and 25 cm deep Flesh Tough, fibrous, dark brown Smell The cut flesh has a strong fungal smell Taste Bitter Season All year Distribution Very common Habitat On living and dead deciduous trees, favouring beech Spore Print Brown Microscopic Features Spores ellipsoidal, truncated, warty (8-13) x (6-9) µm2 Edibility Inedible Notes Spores may be collected from a piece of spore coated bark or a leaf on the ground beneath a cap. This fungus could be confused with Ganoderma applanatum. 
16 August 2008 West Sussex. Photograph copyright Leif Goodwin. |