Auriscalpium vulgare S. F. Gray
Nat. Arr. Brit. Pl. 1: 650. 1821.

Common Name: none

• Pileus

  Cap 1-3 cm broad, broadly convex, bean-shaped; surface dry, densely covered with reddish-brown to dark-brown hairs; margin buff-brown, concolorous with the spines; flesh thin, light-brown, leathery; odor mild.

• Hymenophore

  Teeth light brown to buff-brown, crowded, 1-3.5 mm long.

• Stipe

  Stipe 2-8 cm tall, 1-3 mm thick, more or less equal; surface dry, covered like the cap with reddish-brown to dark-brown hairs; attached laterally to the cap.

• Spores

  Spores 4.5-5.5 x 4-5 µm, nearly round, roughened, the ornamentation amyloid. Spore print white.

• Habitat

  Solitary to several on conifer cones, primarily Douglas fir in our area; from late fall to mid-winter.

• Edibility

  Unknown, but too tough to be considered for the table.

• Comments

  Auriscalpium vulgare is recognized by its unusual kidney-shaped, hairy brown cap, laterally attached stipe and habit of growing on Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) cones. Although it is a fairly common, it is seldom collected due to its small size and drab coloration. It is interesting to note that Auriscalpium vulgare is found on pine cones in Europes, whereas we have only seen it on Douglas fir, with two exceptions on sugar pine (Pinus lambertiana) cones in the Sierra Nevada foothills.

• References

  Coker, W.C. & Beers, A.H. (1951). The Stipitate Hydnums of the Eastern United States. The University of North Carolina Press: Chapel Hill, NC. 211 p.
  Hall, D. & Stuntz, D.E. (1971). Pileate Hydnaceae of the Puget Sound Area. I. White-Spored Genera: Auriscalpium, Hericium, Dentinum and Phellodon. Mycologia 63(6): 1099-1128.
  Mass Geesteranus, R.A. (1971). Hydnaceous Fungi of the Eastern Old World. North Holland Publishing Company: Amsterdam, Netherland. 175 p.
  Pegler, D.N., Roberts, P.J. & Spooner, B.M. (1997). British Chanterelles and Tooth Fungi. Royal Botanic Gardens: Kew, England. 114 p.
  Smith, A.H. (1949). Mushrooms in their Natural Habitats. Sawyer's Inc: Portland, OR. 626 p.

• Other Descriptions and Photos
  • Taylor F. Lockwood: Auriscalpium vulgare (CP) — distance shot; these five photos are a series of photos from not to close to extreme closeup
  • Taylor F. Lockwood: Auriscalpium vulgare (CP) — growing on a Douglas fir cone
  • Taylor F. Lockwood: Auriscalpium vulgare (CP) — a little closer
  • Taylor F. Lockwood: Auriscalpium vulgare (CP) — closeup of the underside of the cap
  • Taylor F. Lockwood: Auriscalpium vulgare (CP) — closeup of the teeth
  • Paul Stamets: Auriscalpium vulgare (CP) — SEM photograph
  • Boleslaw Kuznik — Hunting for Mushrooms: Auriscalpium vulgare (CP)
  • BioImages: The Virtual Field-Guide (UK): Auriscalpium vulgare (CP)
  • George Barron's Fungi of Canada (East): Auriscalpium vulgare (D & CP)
  • Pilze, Pilze, Pilze: Auriscalpium vulgare (CP)
  • Mushroom Observer: Auriscalpium vulgare (CP)
  • Arora (1986): p. 629 (D), p. 630 (P)
  • Breitenbach & Kränzlin (vol. 2): sp. 283 (D, I, & CP)
  • Jordan: p. 91 (D & CP)
  • Lincoff: p. 426 (D), plate 373 (CP)
  • Miller: sp. 333 (D & CP)
  
  

  (D=Description; I=Illustration; P=Photo; CP=Color Photo)