Xylobolus illudens (Purplish Stereum)

This species produces leathery fruit bodies on dead wood, most often dead wood lying on the ground. A fruit body starts as a small circular patch on the wood (either on the sides or on the underside, but not on the upper surface). This expands to produce a sheet-like growth, flush on the wood. The fruit body may remain flush or one or more margins of the sheet may turn away from the wood to produce anything from a shelf-like to bowl-like addition. Technically such a composite growth form is described as effused-reflexed (effused: the sheet-like bit; reflexed: the turned-out bit). Usually the effused area covers several square centimetres and any reflexed section may extend outward a centimetre or two (and is a few millimetres thick). However, a number of fruit bodies may develop close together and two or more may merge.

The surface of the effused section and the lower side of any reflexed section(collectively the hymenial surface) may have some bumpiness but overall is smooth and dark pinkish-brown or purplish-brown (except possibly for a whitish margin). The other side of any reflexed section is hairy and concentrically banded in shades of brown (usually dark) except possibly for a whitish margin.

This species is found on dead wood of a variety of plant species in a wide variety of habitats and fruit bodies generally appear in groups.

This species has also been known as Stereum illudens and you will still that name in various publications or websites.

Look-alikes

Punctularia strigozozonata has a similar growth form, is hairy on the upper surface of any reflexed section and has dark brown to purplish brown colours. When fresh, the hymenial surface is somewhat gelatinous with obvious nodules or ridges. On drying these collapse a little but the hymenial surface is likely to remain bumpy (somewhat cobblestone–like) and have a very dark colour (sometimes blackish-purple).

Chondrostereum purpureum is at first strikingly purple, later pale brownish-lilac.

Species of Stereum do not have the dark pinkish-brown to purplish-brown hymenial surfaces.