Schizophyllum commune Fries
Obs. Myc. 1: 103. 1815.

Common Name: Split Gill

• Sporocarp

  Fruiting body a leathery, fan-shaped bracket, 1-3.5 cm broad, frequently lobed or fused at the base with other brackets; upper surface densely hairy, light greyish-brown when moist, ashy grey to white when dry; lower surface light grey consisting of well spaced, longitudinally split gills; stipe usually absent; flesh thin, light grey to brown, tough.

• Spores

  Spores 3-4 x 1-1.5 µm, cylindrical, smooth; spore print white.

• Habitat

  Scattered to clustered on hardwood logs and branches; fruiting after the fall rains, but can be found year round.

• Edibility

  Inedible; too small and leathery to be of culinary value.

• Comments

  This small, ashy-grey bracket looks like a polypore but the lower, hymenial surface consists of gills, the latter unusual in that they are split longitudinally. The genus name Schizophyllum, literally means "split leaves" referring to this character. Fruiting bodies are persistent, shriveling in dry weather, but reviving after rains.

• Other Descriptions and Photos
  • Brother Alfred Brousseau: Schizophyllum commune (CP)
  • Brother Alfred Brousseau: Schizophyllum commune (CP)
  • Michael Wood: Schizophyllum commune (CP)
  • Boleslaw Kuznik -- Hunting for Mushrooms: Schizophyllum commune (CP)
  • Na Grzyby: Schizophyllum commune (D & CP)
  • Tom Volk's Fungus of the Month: Schizophyllum commune (D & CP)
  • Arora (1986): p. 590 (D), p. 591 (P)
  • Jordan: p. 128 (D & CP)
  • Lincoff: p. 493 (D), plate 472 (CP)
  • Miller: sp. 86 (D & CP)
  • Phillips: p. 210 (CP), p. 211 (D)

  (D=Description; I=Illustration; P=Photo; CP=Color Photo)