A Strange Mushroom
Bear’s Head Tooth, a fungus growing in Hurd State Park in East Hampton, CT.
At East Hampton, Ct.
Hiking with friends in Hurd State Park yesterday we came upon a most unusual mushroom, a whitish, shaggy-looking thing growing in a crevice in a silver maple on the banks of the Connecticut River.
I couldn’t recall having seen one before. In this very wet year, of course, the fungi are flourishing. Returning home, I checked the National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mushrooms. What we saw was something called Bear’s Head Tooth, which can be as much as 12 inches wide and 20 inches high. This one was about half that size. Not only is it edible, the guide says it is “very good when cooked slowly.” Uhh. You first.