The Fungi world (36) : Birch polypore

The Fungi world (36) : Birch polypore

In winter fungi are rare, but they do exist (shot was taken on 28th. Feb).

This is the very young stage of the Birch polypore, a fungus that grows almost exclusively on weakened birches as a parasite and causes brown rot and eventually death of the tree.
The growth starts mostly early spring and it takes a few months until autumn to reach its mature hooflike shape with a fruiting body up to 30 cm !

This fungus (along with the Hoof fungus - Fomes fomentarius) was also carried by the “Ötzi Iceman”, the incredibly well-preserved 5000 year old Neolithic man found in 1991 in a glacier near the border of Austria and Italy. It is presumed the Iceman has used this fungus to fight bacterial infections.

Dutch name : Berkenzwam
German name : Birkenporling
Latin name : Piptoporus betulinus