Well, here's the question - is it or isn't it?
And the answer is yes, but maybe no. This is the tree fungus called Sulfer Shelf, otherwise Laetiporus gilbertsonii or Laetiporus sulfereus. It's also called "chicken of the forest" because it's so highly prized and tasty. Only....
Some people have bad gastrointestinal reactions to these fungi when grown on eucalyptus trees. And this one - across the street from my house - is growing on eucalyptus. Why the reaction? I'm not sure. They won't kill you but they might make you sick. Am I taking a chance? Probably not.
They sure are pretty, though.
UPDATE: I have to post a caveat - don't eat wild mushrooms you see in the woods unless they have been identified by an expert. But you know that already, don't you?
4 comments:
My husband had me take a picture of a mushroom we saw last week on a hike. He thought it might be a morel. Of course, if it is edible, it is already gone by now!
eeeeeeeeek! No. No thanks....
Reminds me that I still have a zillion pics of mushrooms from West Virginia. Mostly pretty, and mostly poisonous...
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are all mushrooms that look like this Sulfer Shelf? I've seen it often in my walks in the woods...neat flame colors, sometimes!
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