Species details
Earpick fungus
Auriscalpium vulgare
Inedible
Photo: Bente Rian · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Photo source · License
Description
A small spoon-shaped tooth fungus with a long thin stem, characteristically growing directly from old, often partly buried pine cones.
Identification features
The cap is small, kidney- to spoon-shaped, brown and felted. The underside bears fine spines. The stem is thin, dark brown and eccentrically attached.
Identification checklist
The most reliable clue is the small brown spoon-like cap with spines, connected by a long stem to a buried pine cone.
How to separate similar species
Because of its distinctive substrate, confusion with larger tooth fungi is unlikely when the whole fruitbody is seen.
Habitat
Grows mainly on old pine cones, often hidden in forest soil, less often on spruce cones, from summer to late autumn.
Fruiting period
June, July, August, September, October, November
Similar species
- Phellodon species
- Hydnellum species
- Sarcodon species