Description

Trametes versicolor

A common polypore mushroom found throughout the world. Meaning ‘of several colours’, versicolor reliably describes this fungus that displays different colors.

The top surface of the cap shows typical concentric zones of different colors, and the margin is always the lightest. Underneath a layer of tomentum is a black layer, topping the whitish flesh. The flesh itself is 1–3 mm thick and has a leathery texture.

Older specimens, such as the one pictured, can have zones with green algae growing on them, thus appearing green. It commonly grows in tiled layers in groups or rows on logs and stumps of deciduous trees, and is common in North America.

The mushroom is stalkless and the cap is rust-brown or darker brown, sometimes with black zones. The cap is flat, up to 8 × 5 × 0.5–1 cm in area. It is often triangular or round, with zones of fine hairs. The pore surface is whitish to light brown, with pores round and with age twisted and labyrinthine. 3–8 pores per millimeter.