My favorite fungus - Tyromyces chiones

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/90617745

I site Dylan's pic because it is a perfect find of my favorite mushroom Tyromyces chiones.

This innocuous and often overlooked shelf fungus is soft and and spongy, with white pores beneath. Its color varies from bright white when fresh to dull yellow when dry. When fresh it exudes a watery juice when squeezed.

I often see this kind of example, on birch wood sticks, 1-3 inches in diameter. The fresh specimen smells like pink cherries. It is a pleasant almost powdery fragrance.

When broken the stick smells of cinnamon and the wood is yellow inside.

I have smelled these fresher specimens from 10 feet away. The fragrance of either the pink cherries or cinnamon has hit me when I'm hiking or bicycling. I figure out where the wind is coming from in that spot and head upwind. Within about 10 feet I find a stick or a downed branch and enjoy the smells both from the fungus and the inner wood. If the branch is short enough I can smell it on one end or the other.

It also strikes me odd that I have not seen mention in guide books or online of the cinnamon scent of the wood. The fungus itself is often mentioned as having a pleasant scent.

Still it is a find. When I have lead groups or been with a friend and broken open the stick and passed it around everyone smiles and finds the smell of cinnamon enchanting. And often they enjoy how nice the fungus smells but just can't place what it smells like. But it's nice, it's pleasant.

Posted on Σεπτέμβριος 26, 2023 1203 ΠΜ by