Community find

Tiger's Eye Polypore

Trametes versicolor

Group

Polypore

Season

Found year-round in many climates, but most prolific during warmer, wetter months. It can persist through winter.

Habitat

Typically found on decaying hardwood, logs, stumps, and fallen branches. It is a very common and widespread species, found in woodlands and forests.

Key characteristics

Caps are thin, leathery, and fan-shaped, often zoned with concentric rings of various colors like brown, tan, gray, black, and white. The surface can be velvety or finely hairy. The underside has small pores rather than gills, which are typically white or yellowish-white. The margin is often wavy or lobed. It is a smaller polypore, usually 2-8 cm across.

Look-alikes

There are several other species of Trametes and Stereum that can look similar. Stereum ostrea (False Turkey Tail) lacks pores on the underside, having a smooth or wrinkled surface instead. Trametes hirsuta is usually thicker, grayer, and has a hairier upper surface. Trametes pubescens is paler and has a finely velvety cap.

Ecological role

This mushroom is a saprophytic fungus, meaning it breaks down dead wood. It plays a crucial role in nutrient cycling in forest ecosystems by decomposing lignin and cellulose in fallen trees and branches, returning organic matter to the soil.