Bear’s Head Tooth
(Hericium americanum)
Conservation • Description • Habitat • Ecology • Distribution • Taxonomy
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Description |
Bear’s Head Tooth is a fairly common and widespread edible fungus. It occurs in the United States east of the Great Plains, in southern Canada, and in Central America. In the United States it is most common in the Northeast and upper Midwest. It is fairly common in eastern Minnesota. Reports of it in the west may be misidentified specimens of Hericium abietis. It is found in woodlands where it gets its nutrients from decaying wood (saprobic), and possibly from living wood (parasitic) when it first appears. It grows alone or in groups on dead hardwood logs and stumps, and on wounds of living hardwoods. It rarely grows on conifers. When it first appears, the fruiting body is knobby and toothless. At this stage it cannot be distinguished from the two other Hericium species that also occur in Minnesota. The mature fruiting body is a 6″ to 12″ (15 to 30 cm) in diameter compact cluster of forked, spine-bearing branches. It is white when young, turning yellowish or brownish as it ages. The branches rise from a thick base. At the end of each branch there is a cluster of numerous, densely packed spines that hang downward like icicles. The spines can be 3 ⁄16″ to 1½″ (5 to 40 mm) long, but are mostly more than ⅜″ long. There is often also a row of spines hanging from the underside of the branch like the teeth of a comb. The flesh is white and edible when young and still white. It does not discolor when cut. The spore print is white. |
Similar Species |
Coral Tooth Fungus (Hericium coralloides) spines are short, no more than ⅜″ long. Lion’s Mane (Hericium erinaceus) is an unbranched, cushion-shaped mass of closely packed spines. The spines are ¾″ to 2″ long or longer. It is rare in Minnesota. |
Habitat and Hosts |
Forests and woodlands; hardwoods. |
Ecology |
Season |
August through November |
Distribution |
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Sources |
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| 10/6/2024 | ||
Occurrence |
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Fairly common in eastern Minnesota |
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Taxonomy |
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Kingdom |
Fungi (fungi) |
Subkingdom |
Dikarya |
Division |
Basidiomycota (club fungi) |
Subdivision |
Agaricomycotina (jelly fungi, yeasts, and mushrooms) |
Class |
Agaricomycetes (mushrooms, bracket fungi, puffballs, and allies) |
Subclass |
Agaricomycetidae |
Order |
Russulales |
Family |
Hericiaceae (tooth fungi) |
Genus |
Hericium |
Subordinate Taxa |
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Synonyms |
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Bear’s Head Tooth was first described in 1984. Older texts often used the name Hericium coralloides for this species and the name Hericium laciniatum for what is now called Hericium coralloides. |
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Common Names |
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Bear’s Head Tooth Bear’s Head Tooth Fungus |
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Glossary
Saprobic
A term often used for saprotrophic fungi. Referring to fungi that obtain their nutrients from decayed organic matter.
Visitor Photos |
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Chiara Race |
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Lisa Kovacs |
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Jill Jacobson |
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MinnesotaSeasons.com Photos |
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Slideshows |
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Other Videos |
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Bear's Head Tooth - Hericium americanum |
About
Published on Sep 19, 2017 Hericiums are easy to identify and they are edible. Always eat a very small amount in the beginning to find out whether your digestive system objects in any way. Just because a fungi is deemed "edible" does not mean some of us may have some reaction to it. In the video I gave this particular Hericium the wrong name - and I apologise for this. Bear's Head Tooth is what you see in the video which is Hericium americanum. Western Canada and US there is lion's mane (Hericium erinaceus). There is also another edible look-a-like, Comb Tooth Fungus (Hericium coralloides). These easy-to-identify fungi are highly beneficial to our health in many ways. For more information please check out the following links: http://www.ediblewildfood.com/blog/2016/10/lions-mane-edible-and-medicinal-fungi/ http://www.ediblewildfood.com/bears-head-tooth.aspx http://www.ediblewildfood.com/comb-tooth-fungus.aspx https://latitudes.org/lions-mane-can-tame-anxiety/ https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/jf404463v |
Lion's Mane / Hericium Americanum Mushroom ~ Hunt, & Identify ~ Minnesota Mushrooms |
About
Published on Oct 8, 2018 lions mane mushroom, |
Visitor Sightings |
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Chiara Race |
Location: Herman, Stevens County, MN |
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| Lisa Kovacs 9/27/2020 |
Location: Crow-Hassan Park Reserve |
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| Jill Jacobson 9/11/2019 |
Location: Maplewood State Park |
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MinnesotaSeasons.com Sightings |
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Created: 9/22/2019 Last Updated: © MinnesotaSeasons.com. All rights reserved. |