jew's ear (dry not rotting)

Description:

The fruit body of A. auricula-judae is normally 3 to 8 centimetres (1.2 to 3.1 in) across, but can be as much as 12 centimetres (4.7 in). It is distinctively shaped, typically being reminiscent of a floppy ear, though the fruit bodies can also be cup-shaped. It is normally attached to the substrate by the back surface of the cup, though there can also be a rudimentary stem. The species has a tough, gelatinous, elastic texture when fresh, but it dries hard and brittle. The outer surface is a bright reddish-tan-brown with a purplish hint, often covered in tiny, downy hairs of a grey colour. It can be smooth, as is typical of younger specimens, or undulating with folds and wrinkles. The colour becomes darker with age. The inner surface is a lighter grey-brown in colour and smooth. It is sometimes wrinkled, again with folds and wrinkles, and may have "veins", making it appear even more ear-like

Habitat:

Auricularia auricula-judae grows upon the wood of deciduous trees and shrubs, favouring elder. In up to 90% of cases, the mushroom is found on elder, but it is often incorrectly assumed to grow exclusively on elder. It has also been recorded on Acer pseudoplatanus (known in the United Kingdom as sycamore), beech, ash, spindle, and in one particular case, the sycamore draining board of an old sink in Hatton Garden. In Australia, it is found in Eucalyptus woodland and rainforests; in the rainforests, it can grow in very large colonies on fallen logs. It favours older branches, where it feeds as a saprophyte (on dead wood) or a weak parasite (on living wood), and it causes white rot. ------Commonly growing solitarily, it can also be gregarious (in a group) or caespitose (in a tuft). Spores are ejected from the underside of the fruit bodies with as many as several hundred thousand an hour, and the high rate continues when the bodies have been significantly dried. Even when they have lost some 90% of their weight through dehydration, the bodies continue to release a small number of spores. It is found all year, but is most common in autumn. It is widespread throughout temperate and sub-tropical zones worldwide, and can be found across Europe, North America, Asia, Australia, South America and Africa. There has been some debate about the appearance of the species in the tropics; while it has been frequently reported there, Bernard Lowy, in an article on Auricularia, said that "of the specimens I have examined, none could be assigned here ----- i look always for hazelnut, when it was wet enough for a little period, they are always to find, also on other wood, but here i find them the most on hazelnut-bushes

Notes:

Edibility -----Auricularia auricula-judae has a soft, jelly-like texture. Though edible, it was not held in high culinary regard in the west for many years. It has been likened to "eating an Indian rubber with bones in it", while in 19th century Britain, it was said that "it has never been regarded here as an edible fungus". It has a mild flavour, and is useful for mixed mushroom recipes, but is still considered bland in the west. It can be dried and rehydrated, sometimes swelling to a very large size.Young specimens are best, but the species is not edible when raw, needing to be cooked thoroughly. The whole fruit body can be eaten, but should be thoroughly washed before cooking. Cooking can sometimes take a comparatively long time. The nutritional content of 100 g (3.5 oz) of dried fungus includes 370 kcal, 10.6 g of protein, 0.2 g of fat, 65 g of carbohydrate, 5.8 g ash, and 0.03% mg of carotene. Fresh mushrooms contain about 90% moisture *{good to dry, he dehydrates easily for storage. Then i use them for soups, where they naturally rehydrate again}.* ------------Cultural depiction: The species is referred to in Christopher Marlowe's play The Jew of Malta. Iathamore proclaims: "The hat he wears, Judas left under the elder when he hanged himself". Later, the species was probably partially the inspiration for Emily Dickinson's poem beginning "The Mushroom is the Elf of Plants", which depicts a mushroom as the "ultimate betrayer". Dickinson had both a religious and naturalistic background, and so it is more than likely that she knew of the common name of A. auricula-judae, and of the folklore surrounding Judas's suicide ---- there is much more to say about this fungi: 1# suggestion from me again: every good thing is also bad, when it is overused, from the jew's ear should not more than 500 g eaten at a day.Otherwise is it a really healthy mushroom!! ( http://www.mycobank.org/MycoTaxo.aspx?Li... ), ( http://www.messiah.edu/Oakes/fungi_on_wo... ), ( http://botit.botany.wisc.edu/toms_fungi/... ), ( http://www.rogersmushrooms.com/gallery/D... ), ( http://www.mushroomexpert.com/auriculari... ),