February 25 Turkey Tail Fungus

There are so many families and species of fungus that we can feel good about identifying the general shape, color, and eating habits of the one we encounter. But I'm going to go out on a log here and say that these are the Trametes versicolor or turkey tail mushrooms, one of the most common in North America. They grow in large groups and spread out like a fan with bands of closely contrasting color. In many pictures I see the bands are browns and reds, which makes me wonder if this green color is just a winter phase. I have only seen greens of these in the places I've looked at mushrooms. The turkey tails are in the Polypore group, meaning literally that they have tubes underneath the cap from which the reproductive spores fall. Also they are abundant, woody, and generally inedible.