Artist's Conch; Artist's Bracket; Artist's Fungus
Depicted is a fine example of the renowned artist's conch a shelving group of which has fairly recently emerged from wounds on a standing tree. The pores of this fungus instantly turn dark brown to the slightest touch, and remain so, making the white pore surface an ideal canvas for an artist's depiction of a desired scene. The fungus is a saprobe on stumps and fallen logs but sometimes is parasitic on living trees, as in this case. A sessile species, it is attached broadly at the base, never with a stalk. It is a perennial fungus that persists and grows a new pore layer with each passing year. Old specimens can reach huge size, up to a meter across, but specimens of 30 to 75 cm across are common. Older specimens are usually dusted with a layer of brownish spores. A large specimen can release trillions of spores, often as many as a billion an hour. The caps are roughened and feature ridges and concentric rings. The surface color is a dull gray brown to cinnamon brown or sometimes a darker brown. The surface can be slightly indented with pressure, but the fungus is woody and resists breaking. The context is brown. The pore surface is poroid, with pore density of 4-5 per millimeter, making them nearly invisible to the naked eye. The fungus strongly favors hardwood, delignifying it and causing a white rot, but will occasionally be found on conifers. Artist conch is inedible but has been used to prepare teas with possibly medicinal properties.