(Sebacina sparassoidea)
Conservation • Description • Habitat • Ecology • Distribution • Taxonomy
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Description |
White Coral Jelly Fungus is a common, fairly large, terrestrial fungus. It occurs in the United States from Maine to Virginia, west to Minnesota and Missouri, and south along the Appalachian Mountains to Georgia. There are also a few records in Florida and in the Pacific Northwest. It also occurs in southern Canada from Nova Scotia to Ontario, and in Mexico. White Coral Jelly Fungus was previously thought to be parasitic on other wood-inhabiting fungi. The exact biology is now uncertain. It may be mycorrhizal, getting its nutrients from the rootlets of plants, or saprobic, getting its nutrients from rotting wood. It is found from July to October, solitary or scattered, in hardwood forests. It usually grows on the ground, especially under oak, often near stumps. It sometimes grows on well-rotted wood. When it first appears, it is a mass of branches rising from the ground in a common central area. The branches are white, flattened, hollow, and bluntly pointed at the tip. As the fruiting body ages, the branches become repeatedly branched. The branchlets come together, rejoin, and fuse (anastomosing). The mature fruiting body is 1″ to 3″ (2.5 to 8.0 cm) high and 1⅜″ to 6″ (3.5 to 15.0 cm) wide. The branches are creamy white to slightly brownish. They are gelatinous, somewhat cylinder shaped or “finger-like”, firm, and elastic. When bent, twisted, or compressed, they will spring back into their original shape. The tips are rounded. The surface is smooth. The edibility is unknown. The spore print is white. |
Similar Species |
Habitat and Hosts |
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Ecology |
Season |
July to October |
Distribution |
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Sources Burt, E.A. (1921). Some North American Tremellaceae, Dacryomycetaceae, and Auriculariaceae. Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 8(4): 361-396. |
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12/3/2024 | ||
Occurrence |
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Common |
Taxonomy |
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Kingdom |
Fungi (fungi) |
Subkingdom |
Dikarya |
Phylum |
Basidiomycota (club fungi) |
Subphylum |
Agaricomycotina (jelly fungi, yeasts, and mushrooms) |
Class |
Agaricomycetes (mushrooms, bracket fungi, puffballs, and allies) |
Order |
Sebacinales |
Family |
Sebacinaceae |
Genus |
Sebacina |
Higher Ranking Genus |
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Subordinate Taxa |
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Synonyms |
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Corticium reticulatum Corticium tremellinum Corticioides reticulatum Tremella incisa Tremella reticulata Tremella sparassoidea |
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Common Names |
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White Coral Jelly White Coral Jelly Fungus |
Glossary
Anastomosing
Referring to veins, such as on a plant leaf or a lichen, that branch and rejoin, forming a network.
Mycorrhizal
A symbiotic, usually beneficial relationship between a fungus and the tiny rootlets of a plant, usually a tree.
Saprobic
A term often used for saprotrophic fungi. Referring to fungi that obtain their nutrients from decayed organic matter.
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Created: 12/3/2024 Last Updated: © MinnesotaSeasons.com. All rights reserved. |