Stats

Lifespan

Annual

Size

Small

Diet

Decomposer

Biome

Coniferous forest

Range

Northern Hemisphere

Movement

Sessile

Breeding

Spores

Defense

Toxins

Status

Common

About

This fungus grows in thin, rust-colored brackets on the bark of dead conifer trees. It is one of the few polypores that develops sharp, blade-like gills to release its spores.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   spore

   A microscopic spore drifts on air or water and germinates where moisture and substrate meet.
2. 2.
   mycelium

   A thread-like mycelium spreads through the substrate, breaking it down into nutrients.
3. 3.
   fruiting body

   A mature fruiting body emerges to release the next generation of spores.

Learn more

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Taxonomy

Kingdom

Fungi

Phylum

Basidiomycota

Class

Agaricomycetes

Order

Gloeophyllales

Family

Gloeophyllaceae

Genus

Gloeophyllum

Species

Gloeophyllum sepiarium