Edible
Coral Tooth
Hericium coralloides
Also white and branched on hardwood logs, but its spines hang downward and it has no upward-pointing crowned tips.
Crown-Tipped Coral
Artomyces pyxidatus
Edible
Also called crown coral, candelabra coral.
The crown-tipped coral is a pale yellow to tan coral fungus that grows on rotting hardwood logs, especially aspen and poplar. Each branch ends in a tiny cup ringed with points, like a crown, which separates it from the corals that grow on the ground.
The tell
Pale branched coral on dead wood, each branch tip ending in a small crown of points.
Field marks
What to look at
Cap, underside and stem show in a photo. The spore print does not, and it is often the deciding check.
- Cap
- No cap. A branched, coral-like cluster, pale yellow, cream or tan, becoming pinkish tan to brownish with age.
- Underside
- No gills or pores. The branches fork repeatedly, and each tip ends in a small cup with several points around the rim.
- Stem
- A short, narrow base attached to the wood.
- Flesh
- Whitish, tough to pliable. Taste is reported as mild to peppery.
- Spore print
- White.
- Size
- 2 to 5 inches tall (5 to 13 cm) and about as wide.
Where and when
Where and when it grows
- Habitat
- Hardwood forests.
- Grows on
- Rotting hardwood logs and stumps, especially aspen, poplar and willow.
- Season
- Summer to fall.
- Range
- Widespread in North America, most common in the East and Midwest.
Lookalikes
What the crown-tipped coral gets confused with
Each card says how to tell the two apart.
Coral fungi (Ramaria species)
Most grow on the ground rather than on wood, and their branch tips are pointed or blunt, not crown-shaped. Some are recorded as causing gastrointestinal upset.
Crested coral (Clavulina coralloides)
A white coral on the ground, with branch tips that are finely toothed or crested rather than ending in small cups.
Edibility
What the field guides say
Edible
Field guides list the crown-tipped coral as edible. It is small and somewhat tough, and some guides note a peppery taste when raw. Coral fungi in the genus Ramaria, which grow on the ground rather than wood, include species recorded as causing gastrointestinal upset.
This page states what field guides record. It is not advice to eat, taste or handle anything, and a photo cannot settle edibility. If someone has eaten a wild mushroom that may be toxic, call poison control (1-800-222-1222 in the US) right away, before symptoms start: the deadliest species act hours later.
FAQ
Questions about the crown-tipped coral
Is crown-tipped coral edible?
Field guides list Artomyces pyxidatus as edible. It is small and somewhat tough, and some guides describe its raw taste as peppery.
How do you identify crown-tipped coral?
By the branch tips and the wood it grows on. Each branch ends in a tiny cup with points around the rim, like a crown, and it grows on rotting hardwood logs, not on the ground. Most other coral fungi grow from soil.
Where does crown-tipped coral grow?
On rotting logs and stumps of hardwoods, especially aspen, poplar and willow, from summer into fall. It is most common in eastern and midwestern North America.
Sources
Where these facts come from
- Artomyces pyxidatus
MushroomExpert.com
- Artomyces pyxidatus
Fungi Growing on Wood, Gary Emberger (MushroomExpert.com)
- Crown-Tipped Coral
Missouri Department of Conservation
- Artomyces pyxidatus
Index Fungorum
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