Phlebia incarnata

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by Michael Kuo

Here is a gorgeous little polypore with a very ugly name. "Phlebia incarnata" sounds like the flapping, flustered daughter who was never let out of the house--and the previous name for this mushroom, Merulius incarnatus, wasn't much better. At any rate, it is found on hardwood logs from the Mississippi watershed (where it is apparently most common) eastward. When fresh the overlapping caps are coral pink, and unmistakable. The white pore surface can appear veined, or almost toothed. There is no stem, and the spore print is white.

Phlebia incarnata is too small, and its texture is too tough, to consider as an edible.

Description:

Ecology: Saprobic; growing in overlapping clusters on hardwood logs and stumps, particularly those of white oak, beech, maple, and birch; late spring, summer and fall; east of the Great Plains.

Fruitbody: 2-5 cm across; more or less semicircular, irregularly bracket-shaped, or kidney-shaped; flattened-convex; smooth or finely hairy; bright coral pink, fading with age; the margin wavy, often white; without a stem.

Pore Surface: Whitish to pinkish, becoming dirty white or tan; wrinkled, folded, or almost toothed near the point of attachment; in my collections bruising mustard yellow on mature specimens.

Flesh: White; soft at first, but soon fairly tough and leathery.

Chemical Reactions: In my collections the cap surface and flesh turn olive yellow, then pale orange, with KOH.

Spore Print: White.

Microscopic Features: Spores 4-4.5 x 2-2.5 µ; smooth; elliptical.

REFERENCES: (Schweinitz, 1822) Nakasone & Burdsall, 1984. (Lincoff, 1992; Barron, 1999.) Herb. Kuo 05280404.

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Cite this page as:

Kuo, M. (2004, August). Phlebia incarnata. Retrieved from the MushroomExpert.Com Web site: http://www.mushroomexpert.com/phlebia_incarnata.html