Fomitopsis ochracea

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Fomitopsis ochracea
Fomitopsis ochracea Ryvarden & Stokland 584645.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Basidiomycota
Class: Agaricomycetes
Order: Polyporales
Family: Fomitopsidaceae
Genus: Fomitopsis
Species:
F. ochracea
Binomial name
Fomitopsis ochracea
Ryvarden & Stokland

Fomitopsis ochracea is a polypore fungus found in North America. [1] It was isolated from Albertan forests, and can be found in British Columbia. [1] It has been isolated as far East as Newfoundland, but prefers Northern climates. [2] It can be isolated throughout the Appalachian range, as far down as Georgia. [2] It is a detritivore on both hardwood trees and conifers, causing a brown cubical rot. [1] It is a member of the genus Fomitopsis, a common group of perennial fungi.

Description

Fomitopsis ochracea is a fungus that may be shaped like a hoof or flattened in a fan-like manner. [1] It can grow quite large, up to 20 cm in width and 7 cm thick. [1] The top surface of the fungus is smooth and may be coloured white, grey, brown, or black, with parallel lines. [1] It can have black or brown spotting on the surface. [2] The underside is a creamy-white, with even, round pores. [1] It can also become orange with age. [2] If broken open, the context will be woody with a creamy-white colour and no bands. [1] There is no visible bruising upon breaking open the body. [1] There are about 5-6 pores present per millimetre. [1] It can have a faint sweet odour. [2]

Historically, this fungus has been misidentified as F. pinicola. When both species are immature, they can look very similar, but can be distinguished by lighting a match next to the surface of the fungus. [1] F. pinicola will boil and melt in heat, while F. ochracea will not. [1] If this test is not available, a simple bruise test can distinguish the two. F. pinicola will bruise a yellow colour when broken open, while F. ochracea will not bruise at all.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Ginns, J. H. (James Herbert) (2017). Polypores of British Columbia (Fungi: Basidiomycota). Victoria, BC. ISBN   978-0-7726-7053-3. OCLC   982126526.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Haight, John-Erich; Nakasone, Karen K.; Laursen, Gary A.; Redhead, Scott A.; Taylor, D. Lee; Glaeser, Jessie A. (2019-03-04). "Fomitopsis mounceae and F. schrenkii—two new species from North America in the F. pinicola complex" . Mycologia. 111 (2): 339–357. doi:10.1080/00275514.2018.1564449. ISSN   0027-5514. PMID   30908115. S2CID   85515024.
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