Pale Oyster

Cap

White/off white to pale grey/brown emerging in ‘shelves’ laterally from the medium they are growing in. Generally shell or fan shaped developing uneven or lobed edges with age.

Gills

White to off white/tan with age, crowded and very decurrent, running all or almost all the way down the underside.

Stem

Can have a stem like growth emerging from the wood it is growing from or the fruiting body/cap can grow straight from the tree.

Flesh

White, firm and meaty.

Habitat

On dead or standing deciduous wood, prefers Beech but can be found on many trees.

Possible Confusion

Angel’s Wings (Pleurocybella porrigens) are similar but are very thin, unlike Pale Oysters. They can be deadly poisonous to some people so should be avoided

Olive Oysterling (Sarcomyxa serotina) looks similar but is more olive coloured and has darker gills, even when young. This mushroom is reported as edible so it shouldn’t cause any problems with misidentification.

Oyster Mushroom (Plurotus ostreatus), pictured, is very similar but is grey/blue coloured and grows in the colder months, unlike the warm loving Pale Oyster. It is thought the two can hybridise making identification sometimes very difficult.

Spore Print

White. Cylindrical.

Frequency

Common.

Other Facts

Oyster mushrooms are omnivorous, digesting dead organic plant matter and catching nematode worms with lassos of mycelium, then entering the worms mouth and digesting them from the inside. this provides the mushroom with nitrogen.