Species details
Leafy brain
Phaeotremella frondosa
Inedible
Photo: Huafang · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Photo source · License
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Description
A gelatinous, trembling pale- to dark-brown fungus made up of many crowded, ear-like, folded lobes.
Identification features
The fruitbody is thin, semi-translucent and composed of crowded brown lobes. In wet weather it is gelatinous and elastic; when dry it becomes cartilaginous and darker. There is no stem.
Identification checklist
Look for brown gelatinous, ear-like folded lobes without a stem on dead deciduous wood.
Habitat
Grows on dead trunks, branches and stumps of deciduous trees, especially during wet periods from summer to winter, but may occur year-round.
Fruiting period
July, August, September, October, November, December
Ecology
- Trophic mode
- Parasitic
- Substrate
- Dead wood
- Notes
- Grows on dead trunks, branches and stumps of deciduous trees, especially during wet periods from summer to winter, but may occur year-round.
How to separate similar species
Brown jelly fungi can be very similar. Substrate, lobe shape and, when needed, microscopic characters are important for reliable identification.