Bitter Iodine Polypore
A member of the Albatrellaceae family this polypore favors old growth forests where it emerges terrestrially from buried roots of conifers and sometimes can be found on conifer stumps, as in this photo. It is fan-shaped with an entire or irregular margin and can reach 15-20cm across. The surface is short pubescent, gray brown or lilac gray or dark brown. The texture is tough, rendering it inedible as would the bitter taste and smell of iodine when cut. The pore surface consist of small pores 1-2 per millimeter and in age pores can be angular as noted posteriorly in the photo. The stalk is laterally attached and thick, up to 3.5cm broad, and up to 6-8cm long. It is colored like the cap.