About this fungus
Scaly Tooth is a fungus in the Bankeraceae family. Its habitat and field characteristics are summarised below.
A large pine-associated tooth fungus with coarse dark brown cap scales and a dense layer of downward-pointing spines beneath.
What to check
Confirm teeth rather than gills or pores, a dry cap breaking into overlapping scales, and growth with pine. Teeth begin pale and become grey-brown to purplish brown. The stem has no ring or volva. Host is more dependable than subjective flavour for separating its closest relative.
Variation
Young caps can be velvety before developing coarse scales. Cap and teeth darken with age, and expanded caps may become centrally depressed.
Lookalikes
Sarcodon imbricatus is extremely similar but is associated mainly with spruce, while S. squamosus is linked to pine. Sarcodon scabrosus has different cap scaling and a dark greenish to blackish stem base. Microscopy may still be needed for atypical collections.
Habitat and range
Ectomycorrhizal with pine on sandy or well-drained soil in established European woodland. Many older records under Sarcodon imbricatus combined the pine and spruce species.
Food safety
Edible.
Use this profile to learn what to examine and compare, not as proof that a mushroom is safe to eat. Check the whole specimen and every important lookalike before reaching an identification.
Photographs
Laurel (algoressister) / CC BY-SA 3.0