A Good Season For Mock Oyster Mushroom (Phyllotopsis nidulans)

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We first found Phyllotopsis nidulans at Fort Yargo State Park in Barrow County in 2009. We’ve kept our eyes out for it each year but haven’t seen any. Then, last Fall, we found specimens on a pine stump in the Oconee National Forest in Greene County, Georgia. In December, we found some growing on a fallen pine trunk on our property in Walton County. Last week, we found several developing on a tree stump in Elbert County and on a tree trunk in Wilkes County.

Most of the mushrooms we’ve found have been on fallen trunks or stumps of pine trees.

Phyllotopsis nidulans mushrooms on a living, deciduous tree in Wilkes County (February 2013). They are on the right-hand side of the trunk in the center.

The ‘youngest’ specimens. They are uniformly orange and finely hairy.

A fine cluster

Closer views of specimens that are developing densely hairy caps.

A close-up view of an individual cap

The gills

Older specimens on a pine stump in Greene County, Georgia (December 2012). The mushrooms are now white with orange ‘highlights’ and distinctly hairy compared with the younger specimens.

All-in-all, a good season for Phyllotopsis nidulans.

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Identification resource:

Mushroom Expert: Phyllotopsis nidulans

Related posts:
- Mushroom: Phyllotopsis nidulans