Sarcoscypha occidentalis

Common

Late spring to early autumn

Damp hardwood forests; fallen twigs and small branches, sometimes leaf litter.

This is a small, brightly colored but easily overlooked sac fungus. It is found singly or in clusters on fallen twigs of hardwoods on the forest floor, often burried under leaf litter. It sometimes appears to be growing out of the ground, but further inspection will uncover a buried twig.

The cap is cup-shaped or saucer-shaped and rarely more than ¾″ in diameter. The inner (upper) surface of the cup is bright red and smooth. The outer surface is whitish and smooth. When young, the cup is curled unwards and has wavy, scalloped edges. On older specimens as the flesh dries the edges split and the color fades to yellow or orange.

The cap may be attached directly to the food source or with a stalk. When present, the stalk is white or whitish (more or less the color of the cap undersurface), ⅜″ to 13 ⁄16″ long, and 1 ⁄32″ to 1 ⁄16″ thick.

The texture is fleshy or rubbery, becoming leathery as it dries.

Scarlet Cup (Sarcoscypha austriaca) is much larger, ¾″ to 2″ in diameter, and does not have a stalk. It fruits early in the spring.