Crust Fungus on Ash, any ideas?

[earthdragon64]

I saw this a couple of weeks ago on a dead tree which I'm pretty sure was Ash. It was in woodland alongside the River Nairn, just south of Nairn. I'd be grateful for any ID help.





Regards, Audrey.

[diggleken]

Hi Audrey,
I think its likely to be a dry Peniophora quercina with that pinkishness and rolled up edges.
Cheers
Ken

[earthdragon64]

That does look like it could be the one, thanks Ken.

Regards, Audrey.

[Chris Yeates]

It certainly does look rather like P. quercina, but if on ash, then there's the possibility of P. limitata of course . . . . Peniophora is one of those genera which is relatively easy to recognize in the field, but is then often very difficult to take further; often this is because - as I suspect will be the case here - one tends to find older, effete, material lacking good examples of the micro-characters required (after you've crushed several cover-slips of course!)

Chris

[The Woodman]

Are fungi with possibly host related scientific names like Peniophora quercina "on Oak" to be on other species such as Ash?

[Chris Yeates]

Originally Posted by The Woodman

Are fungi with possibly host related scientific names like Peniophora quercina "on Oak" to be on other species such as Ash?

hi

I would never go by the scientific name! Scientific names and English ones can be very misleading - just think of some birds: Black-headed Gull has a brown head in breeding plumage - its scientific name is Larus ridibundus which means Laughing Gull - which is something different again; the Mediterranean Gull has the scientific name Ichthyaetus melanocephalus (melanocephalus means 'black-headed); Iceland Gulls don't nest in Iceland . . . . . and so it goes on!

With fungi it's often worse, the original describers got the host wrong, or it was first described on an atypical habitat - look at Agrocybe putaminum
a fungus which occasionally is found in Britain on wood-chips - the specific epithet refers to cherry stones - on which it was first recognised and described; the situation is a little more straightforward with micro-fungi - but not always!

cheers

Chris

[The Woodman]

Chris

The thread caught my eye as I've seen this fungi on Ash stems in the past but can't remember seeing it on Oak.

Like many things other stuff seen I've just assumed that this grows on Ash, never knowing what it's name was but again assuming it was not a pathogen or problem to the host species. Due to my failing memory I can only recall seeing it on failing or recently dead stems and those at an angle.

I understand your explanation of bird names and Agrocybe putaminum origin. One of my first jobs involved working in a large Cherry orchard which has long since gone.

Chipping seems to be the preferred method of small wood disposal in these parts and in common with previous threads on the subject, I've seen many intesting specimens at or near roadside.

Thanks for your reply.