An easily identifiable, large and white, bracket fungus, which grows horizontally from the trunk of a living or dead birch tree.
Please do not pick the fruiting bodies. These need to be allowed to produce and release their spores for reproduction.
Tony Leech
This large (up to 20cm across) white bracket fungus growing horizontally from the trunk of a living (but not for long) or dead birch tree, or log is not easily confused with any other fungus. It is thicker than many brackets, browns with age and is leathery in texture. On its white undersurface there may be seen fine pores through which the spores drop.
Anywhere (and almost everywhere) where there are birch trees. At NWT Hickling Broad there are some good examples of birch polypore growing on silver birch trees along the main path.
At any time of year. Old brackets discolour and rot on the tree.
Strips of the dried birch polypore were once attached to boards and used as a razor strop to put the finest edge on cut-throat razors. Dried strips are used by entomologists to hold the very fine pins used to mount small insects.
First Nature