How to identify Rosy Polypore

To correctly identify Rosy Polypore (Fomitopsis rosea), check each of these features in order. Misidentification is the most common cause of mushroom poisoning, so cross-reference multiple sources.

Step-by-step identification

1. 1

   Cap

   Shape, color, surface texture, and diameter.

   The upper surface (pileus) is hard, woody, and often covered with a thin, resinous crust in older specimens. Coloration varies from pinkish-brown to reddish-brown, sometimes with grayish or blackish zones, especially towards the base. The margin is usually thick, rounded, and often lighter in color, sometimes with a distinct rosy hue.

2. 2

   Gills

   Attachment to stem, color, and spacing.

   Not gilled. The hymenophore consists of a pore surface. The pore surface is a distinctive rosy pink to reddish-brown, becoming duller with age. Pores are small, 3-5 per millimeter, circular to angular, and the tubes are stratified in older specimens, matching the color of the pore surface.

3. 3

   Stem

   Length, shape, surface, and any ring.

   Absent (sessile). The fruiting body is directly attached to the substrate.

4. 4

   Flesh

   Color, texture, and bruising reaction.

   The context (flesh) is tough, corky to woody, and pale pinkish-brown to reddish-brown, often with a faint, pleasant odor when fresh. It does not change color when bruised or cut.

5. 5

   Fruiting body

   Overall growth pattern.

   Perennial, sessile, hoof-shaped to shelf-like, often imbricate (overlapping). Typically 2-15 cm wide, 2-10 cm deep, and 1-6 cm thick. The upper surface is concentrically zoned, often with a dull, finely tomentose to glabrous texture, ranging in color from pinkish-brown, reddish-brown, to grayish-brown, often with a paler margin. The margin is typically rounded and can be pinkish or whitish when actively growing.

6. 6

   Habitat

   Where it grows and on what substrate.

   Saprobic on dead or dying coniferous wood, particularly spruce (Picea spp.), fir (Abies spp.), and hemlock (Tsuga spp.). Less commonly found on hardwoods. Causes a brown rot.

Key Facts

Cap surfaces

Dull, finely tomentose to glabrous, concentrically zoned, often with a thin resinous crust in older specimens.

Growth Form

Sessile, solitary or imbricate, hoof-shaped to shelf-like.

Spore Print

White

Body color

Upper surface: pinkish-brown, reddish-brown, grayish-brown. Pore surface: rosy pink to reddish-brown.

Odor

Faintly pleasant.

Flesh bruises

Does not bruise.

Height

Not applicable (sessile).

Cap Diameter

2-15 cm wide, 2-10 cm deep, 1-6 cm thick.

Fruit body characteristics

• Gill attachment: Not applicable (polypore, no gills).
• Stem shape: Absent (sessile).
• Stem surface: Absent (sessile).
• Ring: Absent.
• Stem cross-section: Absent (sessile).

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