This tripartite/quadripartite system seems to be found wherever certain Fomes/Fomitopsis species grow and, eventually, rot. I have now seen this or something like it in the PNW, upstate New York and the Sierras. It involves said polypore substrate, Hypocrea (aff.?) pulvinata, and one or more uniperitheciate sordariomycetes with long, slender ostiolar necks. John Plischke had species level IDs for what he believed to be two species co-occurring on this material — Melanospora lagenaria and Ophiostoma polyporicola — at least one of which may be present in this observation as well. The Melanospora is supposed to have paler, oranger necks, as opposed to the darker Ophiostoma. If both are present in this specimen, I can’t tell them apart. Maybe this is neither! Perhaps John will weigh in himself at some point.

Joshua Birkebak (Shua) was given a piece to culture before we had any names beyond guesses at family for the tiny ascos. Awaiting word back on what he finds.

Compare with Observation 33996, Observation 220002 and Observation 246899

Substrate: Fomitopsis pinicola

Habitat: mixed conifer mountain forest

Ecoregion: Sierra Nevada Forests

Collector: D. Newman

Collection #: SFSN009

Collected for the 2016 SFSU Spring Fungi of the Sierra Nevada Field Course

An unusual phenotype shown to us by Feynner. The long, straight, weeping branches are very flexible and easily woven into basketry. He said individuals with this expression are very slow growing and may have been selectively propagated and tended by native peoples.

The blue bruising reaction of the pores is at this link:

https://vimeo.com/137893790

The blue staining of the cut flesh can be seen here:

https://vimeo.com/137893789

No visible spore print; specimen probably too old. [CORRECTION: Spore print faintly yellow overnight.]

Spore microscopy will be performed later and this observation will be updated.

Growing under Populus tremuloides and Abies concolor.

Pores and all parts of the flesh stain blue with bruising/cutting in 15-30 seconds.

A portion of the dried specimen will be sent to David Arora for sequencing, and the remainder will be put in the Gilbertson Herbarium at the University of Arizona.

At the time of creation, this was the most westerly and southerly observation in North America on Mushroom Observer, and according to Arora, it may be the first collection west of the Mississippi River.

ADDENDUM 9-6-2015: Spore measurements were performed. Description: 7.8 [8.0; 10.3] 10.8 × 4.9 [5.1; 6.1] 6.2 µm; Q = 1.38 [1.46; 1.77] 1.90; N = 60; C = 95%; Me = 8.9 × 5.5 µm; Qe = 1.61

Found perching in the flower of Diplacus linearis (formerly named D. grandiflorus in this area). Individual was cool and not too responsive, proboscis was folded under the body as shown when found, i.e. not inserted into the flower tube.

I'm not sure if there was one Gray Fox or two. I first spotted a fox jotting up the trail with what looked like a rat or a squirrel in its mouth. I managed one photo of that, but was annoyed that I'd had yet another fox encounter that resulted in a barely passable photo, even by my lax standards. Then, a few minutes later, I came upon the fox, or a second one, hunting in the stream. That one did that for a bit, then jotted (foxes only jot. It's the preferred verb...) across the trail, where it posed nicely in a patch of owl's clover, and then went up the slope.