Veiled Polypore
- katemacquarrie22
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read
This spring, I’ve been introducing you to some of PEI’s early-season fungi. Today’s example hits the trifecta: it’s common, easy to recognize, and has a cool adaptation. Meet Veiled Polypore (Cryptoporus volvatus).
I’ve posted about some of our polypores before: Artist’s Conk, Pheasant’s Back, and Red-belted among others. Polypores are bracket or shelf fungi that have their spores in tube-like pores (rather than gills, folds, or teeth) under their caps. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned about fungi it’s that they defy generalizations! Veiled Polypore looks more like a puffball than a shelf and, at first glace, doesn’t seem to have pores at all.
Veiled Polypores can be found scattered along the trunks of dead or dying conifers (Photo 1). If this distribution reminds you a bit of the Bark Beetle holes and pitch tubes I showed you in April, give yourself a gold star. Those insect holes give this fungus a convenient entry point into the tree, and the Bark Beetles themselves play a role in fungal dispersal.
When Veiled Polypores first emerge from the tree, their pore surface is covered by a veil – also called a ‘volva’ – giving this fungus both its common and scientific names. As the mushroom matures, a small hole (called an ‘ostiole’) opens in the bottom (Photo 2).
Polypores typically rely on wind to disperse their spores. Keeping your pore-surface veiled and not easily accessible to air currents doesn’t seem like a great strategy, though it clearly works for Veiled Polypores. So, what’s going on?
Bark Beetles access the polypore through the ostiole and feed on the tasty tubes and nutritious spores inside (Photo 3). In so doing, the beetles get covered in spores and carry them along to a new tree. Bark Beetles inoculate trees with Veiled Polypores (and other fungi) when they bore new holes, helping fungal dispersal.
That’s an interesting adaptation but isn’t the end of the story. Researchers have found that – despite the veil – Veiled Polypores do release spores in numbers comparable to polypores that lack a covering and are primarily dispersed by wind. They also develop and release spores during very dry periods, which many polypores don’t.
Some mycologists posit that the veil helps maintain humidity within the fungus and protect the spore surface of this fleshy mushroom from drying out. They believe its primary role is an adaptation to dry conditions rather than insect dispersal. Whether Veiled Polypore’s veil was designed for insects, humidity control, or both, it’s obviously a successful strategy.
While tough, woody perennial species such as Artist’s Conk and Red-belted Polypores can be found year-round, Veiled Polypores are soft, rubbery annuals that appear in spring. They’ll soon fall off the trees or be eaten by insects, so now is the best time to look for these interesting parts of PEI Untamed!
