Hemlock Polypore Fungi

Description:

A young family of late summertime conks growing from a very tall, possibly dying or already dead tree along a road leading to Madera Canyon.

Habitat:

This was found near the base of a live or dying conifer, in one of the sky islands here in Arizona that starts from Madera Canyon, at an altitude of about 5,000 feet (this was found at around 5,500 feet).

Notes:

Rusty copper brown spore print, white margin, white-cream underside (with pores), and the center of the bracket fungus seems to resemble a kind of honey. Usually over 5 inches long, and in tightly-knit families of no more than six. I'm slightly unsure of the exact species, seeing as G. tsugae occurs on hemlock and how that tree does not occur in the Southwest, but it is also sometimes associated with conifers which are abundant in the Coronado National Forest. They were in perfect condition until some Gibbifer californicus (Pleasing Fungus) beatles got hungry! (See other spotting of this same exact polypore; http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/723...). Long praised for its medicinal value in China (along with its partner-in-crime, G. lingzhi), it is now being studied in the United States as a treatment to certain cancers, mainly breast cancer. As a food in the Orient, a method used for preparation is to soak the conks in wine for months, and then the resulting liquid infused with Ganoderma tsugae can be drunk or inserted into candies.