Day 363: This exquisite fungus has been jostled around taxonomically quite a bit since I first learned its scientific classification, and it seems to be one of those species names which is resistant to change in my mind. I hope that the friends who asked me about it only yesterday will forgive me for referring to it as a Hydnum from force of habit. In fact, the currently proper nomenclature is Hericium abietis, known commonly as Bear's-Head. It is edible and choice, but my conscience would give me gyp if I ever picked one and ate it. To me, that would be the gluttonous equivalent of...oh, let's say spray-painting graffiti on Yellowstone's Mammoth Terraces which, in fact, it resembles.
I had been admiring a recurrent colony for a number of years, watching it expand with each subsequent fruiting season until three years ago when I encountered a pair of collectors bearing large plastic bags near the spot where it grew. Given the size of their bags, I explained the Park's limits on gathering wild comestibles, but gave an inward sigh, fearing the deed had already been done and the evidence tucked safely out of sight. Continuing my patrol, I made a loop past the spot where my exemplary specimen should have been...and it was not. Nor was the smaller one which had been developing nearby. I checked the site again each of the next two years, but there was no sign of the fungus. Last night, Kevin showed me a photo he'd taken, largely to ask if I could identify it. I grilled him for the location, and today had the opportunity to check for myself. It was not growing in the precise spot where the previous specimens had been found, but it was close enough to be part of the same mycelial system. I hope no one collects it. It would be such a pity to destroy something so beautiful just for a few minutes of gustatory gratification.
