Coltricia perennis (Fr.) Murrill
tiger's eye
Hymenochaetaceae
Species account author: Ian Gibson.
Extracted from Matchmaker: Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest.
Introduction to the Macrofungi
tiger's eye
Hymenochaetaceae
Species account author: Ian Gibson.
Extracted from Matchmaker: Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest.
Introduction to the Macrofungi
Species Information
Summary:
Features include 1) a more or less circular cap that is pale cinnamon to deep brown, tough, thin, velvety tomentose, and zoned, 2) rusty brown flesh that stains black with KOH, 3) brown pores that are often slightly decurrent on the stem, 4) central dark brown velvety stem, and 5) growth on the ground in coniferous forests. It is common in the Pacific Northwest. According to Siegel(2) more than one Californian species go by the name Coltricia perennis.
Chemical Reactions:
flesh blackens with KOH (Lincoff)
Odor:
mushroomy (Lincoff), without special odor (Breitenbach)
Taste:
astringent (Lincoff), mild, (Breitenbach)
Microscopic:
spores 6-9(10) x 3.5-5(5.5) microns, elliptic to cylindric-elliptic, smooth, slightly dextrinoid, pale yellowish brown; basidia 4-spored, 15-25 x 5-7 microns, clavate, simple-septate at base; setae none; hyphal system "monomitic with two types of generative hyphae, both with simple septa, a) predominantly straight and sparingly branched, rusty brown, 4-8 microns wide, in most sections with numerous septa, b) twisted, pale yellowish and narrow wide and with few septa, these hyphae are especially common in the context and the central part of the stem, hyphae on pileus surface thick-walled, erect, with distinctive dichotomous branching, pale yellowish brown, 3-8 microns in diam.", (Gilbertson), spores 5-10 x 3.5-6 microns, elliptic, smooth, yellow to ochreous, (Lincoff)
Spore Deposit:
pale yellowish brown (Phillips)
Notes:
It is found in BC, WA, OR, ID, NS, ON, PQ, AL, AZ, CA, CO, CT, FL, GA, IA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MT, NC, NH, NJ, NM, NY, OH, PA, TN, VA, VT, WI, (Gilbertson).
EDIBILITY
no, due to consistency, (Lincoff)
Habitat and Range
SIMILAR SPECIES
Coltricia cinnamomea is generally in hardwood forests, the cap is rarely over 4cm across, the cap surface is shiny, the flesh is up to 0.1cm thick, the stem is up to 0.6cm wide, the spores are 4.5-7.0 microns wide, and antler-like hyphal tips on the cap surface are lacking, whereas C. perennis is typically in coniferous forests, the cap is generally 3-10cm across, the cap surface is dull, the flesh is 0.1-0.3cm thick, the stem is generally 1.0cm wide, the spores are 3.5-5.5 microns wide, and antler-like hyphal tips on the cap surface are present, (Ginns(28)). C. cinnamomea has smaller fruitbodies; has a velvety, shiny to glossy brown to deep reddish brown cap with distinct to indistinct concentric zones; favors hardwood forests, and has wider spores, (Gilbertson). C. cinnamomea is 1-5cm across; has a silky rather than strongly zoned velvety surface; usually has a thinner stem; and has yellow-brown to brown or reddish brown pores that are typically not decurrent, (Arora). Coltricia montagnei has maze-like pores or concentrically arranged plates, (Arora). Polyporus and other stemmed polypores in general do not have rusty brown flesh (Arora). Onnia tomentosa has nonzoned cap, usually more robust fruitbody, and microscopically has setae in the hymenium, (Breitenbach). Phellodon tomentosus is usually smaller but can look similar from the top - it has teeth rather than pores on the underside.Habitat
annual, on ground "in coniferous forests, often on exposed soil like paths, roadsides, clearings, in vicinity of fireplaces, etc.", (Gilbertson), single to gregarious, "in hardwood and coniferous forests, on soil, among needle litter and mosses, commonly on embankments of sandy soil", (Breitenbach), fruiting in summer and fall (Miller), on the ground or on woody debris, "most characteristic of disturbed areas such as trail edges and roadsides in coniferous forests", (Trudell), fall to early winter (Bacon), all year (Buczacki)
Status Information
Synonyms
Synonyms and Alternate Names:
Polyporus decurrens Lloyd
Polyporus perennis Fr.
Polyporus proliferus Lloyd