The Woodsman's Journal Online: Deadman's Finger Fungus...Oooh Scary! ©

Deadman’s Fingers Fungi, from a Facebook shared by Lenee Filo¹

It’s not the Zombie Apocalypse...it’s Halloween, and this isn’t a picture of a zombie’s toes, it is just an especially photogenic example of a type of fungus called Dead Man’s Fingers, or xylaria polymorpha!²

Dead Man’s Fingers fungus is a common type of fungus that found throughout much of the world³, anywhere that there are trees and decaying wood. In the United States it is commonly found in the northeastern, southeastern, and northern midwestern states, but it is less frequently found in the southern midwestern states, it is rare in the western states and isn’t found at all in the Rocky Mountain states.

“Dead_Man's_Fingers”, by Jason Hollinger, taken in the Southern Appalachians Mountains, USA, by Wikimedia, HERE.

Xylaria fungus is a saprobe, which means it decomposes dead or dying organic substances for its dinner, in the case of Dead Man’s Fingers that substance is wood or more specifically the glue which holds the wood together. Xylaria polymorpha uses enzymes which it secretes into the wood in front of its hyphae as they grow to break down glucan and other compounds, which are the glue that holds the wood together. As xylaria digests the glues and decays the wood, the wood becomes soft, this fact is what gives xylaria polymorpha, the title of the “soft” rot fungi.⁴

“2011-04-24_Xylaria_polymorpha_(Pers.)_Grev_142591”, taken in the Great Smoky Mountains, North Carolina, USA, by Wikimedia, HERE.

Some fun facts about Dead Man’s Fingers, they aren’t edible! This is not a fungus that you want to eat, not because it is poisonous, but because it is hard and woody, with a tough white interior and a rough blackened exterior. Also, unlike other fungus that live for only a few days and scatter all their spores at once, xylaria polymorpha scatter their spores over months or years: this is to their advantage because at least some of their spores will be released when conditions are wetter and the best for spore germination.

So, keep your eyes open, who knows maybe the next time you are out in the wilderness, you just might see some Deadman’s Fingers poking up through the ground!

Don’t forget to come back next week and read “The Top Ten Wilderness Survival Skills...Number Four”, where we will talk about wilderness survival and first aid.

I hope that you continue to enjoy The Woodsman’s Journal Online and look for me on YouTube at Bandanaman Productions for other related videos, HERE. Don’t forget to follow me on both The Woodsman’s Journal Online, HERE, and subscribe to BandanaMan Productions on YouTube. If you have questions, as always, feel free to leave a comment on either site. I announce new articles on Facebook at Eric Reynolds, on Instagram at bandanamanaproductions, and on VK at Eric Reynolds, so watch for me.

That is all for now, and as always, until next time, Happy Trails!

Notes

² The full scientific name of this fungus is xylaria polymorpha (Pers.) Grev. The two abbreviations, Pers. and Grev., refer to the two individuals who both are officially credited with classifying Dead Man’s Fingers. In 1797, Christian Hendrik Persoon identified and named Dead Man’s Fingers as the species, sphaeria polymorpha, and in 1824, Robert Kaye Greville renamed this fungus into the new genus, Xylaria.

³ Deadman’s Finger fungus is found in Japan, Indonesia, South Africa, Panama, Malaysia, China, Puerto Rico, the Brazilian Amazon, and it is found in Europe.

From “Dead Man's Fingers: Xylaria Polymorpha” by Website.com.

⁴ This is unlike other fungi which either the lignin or the cellulose of wood and are called “brown” or “white” rot respectively.

From “Dead Man's Fingers: Xylaria Polymorpha” by Website.com.

Sources

Rogers Mushrooms, “The mushrooms: Xylaria polymorpha”, [© 2001-2016 Rogers Plants Ltd.], https://web.archive.org/web/20160303231307/http:/www.rogersmushrooms.com/gallery/DisplayBlock~bid~6926~source~gallerychooserresult.asp, accessed 10/16/2021

The Pennsylvania State University “Dead Man's Fingers”, last updated on October 8, 2013, [The Pennsylvania State University ©2002], https://www.dept.psu.edu/nkbiology/naturetrail/speciespages/deadmansfingers.htm?, accessed 10/16/21

Tu, Chau; “Don’t Be Scared Of These ‘Dead Man’s Fingers’”, October 5, 2016

https://www.sciencefriday.com/articles/dont-be-scared-of-these-dead-mans-fingers/, accessed October 19, 2021

Wikimedia, “Dead_Man's_Fingers”, by Jason Hollinger, Southern Appalachians Mountains, USA, July 19, 2006,

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dead_Man%27s_Fingers.jpg, accessed October 17, 2021

Wikimedia, “2011-04-24_Xylaria_polymorpha_(Pers.)_Grev_142591”, Great Smoky Mountains, North Carolina, USA, April 24 2011, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2011-04-24_Xylaria_polymorpha_(Pers.)_Grev_142591.jpg, accessed October 17, 2021