Chlorociboria aeruginascens Kanouse ex Ramamurthi

Blue stain fungus, green elfcup, green wood cup, blue

About plant names...

Turquoise-colored mushrooms? How cool is that? I've been looking for these for several years, and although I have often found the mycelium on wood—a blue-green stain—I have seen the fruiting bodies only twice, on Mt. Watatic and Oak Hill, both in Massachusetts. Returning to one of the places where I had seen the mycelium, the wood had been removed, apparently by someone who recognizes its wood carving value. It is used in creating intarsia, an inlaying process using tiny, thin veneers similar to parquetry. So I am grateful to Amanda Felegie for sending in the photo she took at Ricketts Glen State Park in Pennsylvania.

Identification: This fungus appears on decayed hardwood, principally oak, spreading deep into the wood. It has small cup-shaped asocarps attached to the wood by a stemlike base called the stipe. The fruiting bodies rarely exceed ¾″ (1.9 cm) in size. The fruiting bodies appear only on wood that is decayed enough to be free of bark. Michael Kuo's site, MushroomExpert.com, points out that these could be either Chlorociboria aeruginascens or Chlorociboria aeruginosa. The only way to differentiate between them is by comparing the spore size, which are a microscopic 5-8 µm by 0.7-2.8 µm, smaller than those of C. aeruginosa.

Online References:

Wikipedia

Michael Kuo's MushroomExpert.com

Tom Volk's Fungi site, at the Department of Biology at the University of Wisconsin

9/14/2023 · Nature Conservancy Access Trail, Sprague Pond, Phippsburg, Maine · ≈ 8 × 5″ (20 × 13 cm)

8/17/2014 · Bald Mountain, Franconia Notch Area, White Mountains, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 10 × 7″ (25 × 16 cm)

10/5/2018 · Oak Hill, Littleton, Mass­a­chu­setts

6/7/2015 · Oak Hill, Tophet Chasm Trail, Littleton, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 6 × 4″ (15 × 10 cm)

10/5/2018 · Oak Hill, Littleton, Mass­a­chu­setts

4/6/2015 · Ricketts Glen State Park, Benton, Penn­syl­vania · By Amanda Felegie

10/5/2018 · Oak Hill, Littleton, Mass­a­chu­setts

10/12/2014 · Mt. Watatic, Ashby, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 6 × 3½″ (14 × 9.4 cm) ID is uncertain

5/3/2014 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 2½ × 1½′ (79 × 53 cm) ID is uncertain

10/12/2014 · Mt. Watatic, Ashby, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 5 × 3″ (12 × 8.4 cm) ID is uncertain

Chlorociboria aeruginascens description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 20 Sep 2023.

© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.

7/31/2021 · Long Reach Preserve, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 3½ × 6″ (9.4 × 14 cm)

5/3/2014 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 2½ × 1½′ (79 × 53 cm) ID is uncertain

4/29/2015 · Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 8 × 5″ (20 × 13 cm)

8/17/2014 · Bald Mountain, Franconia Notch Area, White Mountains, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 10 × 7″ (25 × 16 cm)

5/3/2014 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 2½ × 1½′ (79 × 53 cm) ID is uncertain

5/21/2014 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (18 × 12 cm) ID is uncertain

5/21/2014 · Beaver Brook Assn Conservation Lands, Rte. 130, Hollis, New Hamp­shire · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (18 × 12 cm) ID is uncertain

8/1/2015 · Andres Art Institute, Big Bear Mountain · ≈ 8 × 5″ (19 × 12 cm)

4/8/2021 · Long Reach Preserve, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 3½ × 5″ (8.7 × 13 cm)

10/5/2018 · Oak Hill, Littleton, Mass­a­chu­setts

8/1/2015 · Andres Art Institute, Big Bear Mountain · ≈ 8 × 5″ (19 × 12 cm)

10/5/2018 · Oak Hill, Littleton, Mass­a­chu­setts