(SOURCE: NCBI database)
KINGDOM: Fungi
DIVISION: Basidiomycota
CLASS: Tremellomycetes
ORDER: several different one
Fruiting bodies of jelly fungi are jelly-like, or at least rubbery or look that way. When dry, they shrivel and harden, but when wet, become fleshy again. The picture below conveys the jelly-fungus concept:
Many jelly fungus species can exhibit specific forms, generally somewhat leafy, as shown below:
The more developed the form, the easier it is to identify the species. The brown one above is the Jelly-ear Fungus, Auricularia auricula-judae.
Jelly fungi have no stem, no gills or visible pores, so how do they reproduce? They form microscopic, spore-forming basidia over their body surfaces. The basidia are similar to those on the gills or pore walls on the undersides of regular mushrooms.
Though jelly fungi typically are smallish, they can form eye-catching communities, as shown at the right by the Fan-shaped Jelly Fungus, Dacryopinax spathularia.
Only a few jelly fungi are eaten, having little or an undesirable taste. However, a few are prized for use in soup and vegetable dishes. In the old days, they were soaked in syrup, dried and preserved, then eaten like candy.