Willow Bracket

Willow Bracket Phellinus igniarius (L.) Quél. (illustrated 35% life size) Bracket 10–40×2–8cm across, 5–20cm thick, hoof-shaped, margin obtuse; rusty brown when young, later grey, finally black, margin long remaining rusty brown and velvety; very hard and woody, concentrically ridged, surface becoming cracked. Flesh rusty brown; hard; taste sour or bitter, smell fungusy. Tubes 3–5mm long in each annual layer; rusty brown. Pores 4–6 per mm, circular; rusty cinnamon to maroon. Spores 4.5×6.5×4–5¼, more or less globose; white. Setae fusoid with acute apex, thick-walled, very dark brown. Habitat parasitic on deciduous trees, especially willow, causing intensive white rot; perennial, sporulating from spring to late autumn. Frequent. Not edible. Note this is possibly a complex of species not yet fully resolved.