Please ID this mushroom

[Daniel Eagan]

Saw it descending Whiteface on July 5. At least a foot across:

 

[Chip]

Looks like a fungus called Turkeytail. But I'm just looking at that site.

 

[gaiagirl]

Tell me more about it, if you would. It appears to be on long-dead rotting wood; is that correct? Did it look quite old and decaying (the mushroom itself, I mean)? It does not appear fresh to me, but it would help if you could tell me more about how it appeared to you. Could be one of the hemlock polypores.

 

[Daniel Eagan]

Hmm, the host tree was on the ground, but the fungus itself looked pretty fresh. But if I zoom in on the original I see some spider webs and bits of bark. I can also see that some of the yellow fringe has been chipped off and on the right-hand side apparently eaten. A lot of rain the night before may have made it appear more moist.

I was struck by the size, more than a foot across, but my wife and I were in a hurry and did not hang around very long.

i have to say my first impression was that it looked delicious. Sorry I cannot be more helpful.

 

[gaiagirl]

Interesting. It looks much less fleshy than your assessment that it looked "delicious" would suggest. If it is even the general type of mushroom it appears to be (a polypore) it would not likely be the least bit yummy. I may have to do a bit more research to pin down species, but I do think it's a polypore.