Fungi on Silver Maple

[Mark Chisholm]

Who wants to diagnose this and provide a recommendation? This is on the trunk of a Silver Maple.

 

[Reach]

@KTSmith is probably the best here on fungi. I believe that fungus grows on dead wood though, so your tree probably has a major problem; around here that would be the case and you’re not too far from here. My thought would be to do some drilling or other testing to try to establish the extent of the decay.

 

[RogerM]

I think its bear diarrhea...

 

[KTSmith]

Thanks Reach for the plug. Mark, the critical key ID feature here in the presence or absence of little, downward spines (rather than pores) on the vaguely horizontal lower surface. If spines, I'd start with Irpex lacteus or the "milky-tooth". So who cares? Independent of a precise ID, you clearly have a large area of outer, dead sapwood around a good chunk of the circumference. So, there is definitely a dead, decaying face on a reasonably large stem. Now, I've seen Norway and silver maple survive for some years with similar size infection. However, I've never seen one "out grow" this. Happy to be wrong on this.

 

[Mark Chisholm]

Thanks Reach for the plug. Mark, the critical key ID feature here in the presence or absence of little, downward spines (rather than pores) on the vaguely horizontal lower surface. If spines, I'd start with Irpex lacteus or the "milky-tooth". So who cares? Independent of a precise ID, you clearly have a large area of outer, dead sapwood around a good chunk of the circumference. So, there is definitely a dead, decaying face on a reasonably large stem. Now, I've seen Norway and silver maple survive for some years with similar size infection. However, I've never seen one "out grow" this. Happy to be wrong on this.

Thank you Kevin!