The Nimrod and the Swamm

  Gymnopilus validipes , probably .  This batch was in sorry shape, so my identification is tentative. But given how dry it's been, I can't be too picky about what I choose for the blog. These were growing in a cluster from a well-decayed stump at Eldon Hazlet State Park. At first, I thought it was the Jack O'Lantern, but then I noticed that the gills were notched rather than decurrent and that some of the mushrooms had rings. The mushroom was quite robust. The cap darkened in KOH. (See last photo above.) Arora describes the Gymnopilus  genus as medium to large mushrooms that grow on wood with dry caps that are smooth or scaly. The gills are notched to slightly decurrent. The stalks are more or less central. The spore prints are orange to bright rusty-brown.                                                     ...

We haven't had rain since early September. So finding new mushrooms for the blog hasn't been easy. But I did find these dried out White Cheese Polypores, Tyromyces chioneus . These can grow up to 10 cm wide. They are stemless and have irregular, azonate caps. The upper surface is often velvety. The pores are angular to circular, 3-5 per mm. It is saprotrophic on dead hardwood and is easily removed from the substrate. When fresh, it's fragrant and soggy and you can squeeze water out of it. It dries corky. Negative reaction in KOH.  Tyromyces means "cheesy," and chioneus means "snow white." Compare with  Sprague's Polypore .