Turkey Tail Mushroom: Identification, Habitat and Look-Alikes
Turkey tail (Trametes versicolor) gets its name from its looks: a cluster of thin, banded caps on a stump resembles a fanned-out turkey's tail. In German it is called Schmetterlingstramete, the "butterfly polypore". It is one of the most common polypores in the world.
What turkey tail looks like
- Cap: thin, leathery, 2–8 cm across, fan-shaped. Caps grow in overlapping tiers and often fuse together.
- Upper surface: velvety to hairy, with concentric zones of white, grey, brown, rusty red, bluish or orange. Velvety zones alternate with smoother ones.
- Underside: whitish to pale yellowish, with tiny pores: 3–6 pores per millimetre. You will need a hand lens to see them.
- Flesh: thin, white, tough and flexible. A fresh cap bends without breaking.
Where and when it grows
Turkey tail grows on dead hardwood: stumps, fallen logs and branches of oak, beech, birch or alder. It is rare on conifers. The fungus causes white rot and helps the forest break down wood. The fruiting bodies are perennial, so you can find them all year round, even in winter.
Turkey tail look-alikes
False turkey tail (Stereum)
Also banded on top, but without pores: the underside is smooth. This is the simplest test: no pores, no turkey tail.
Other Trametes species
- Hairy bracket (Trametes hirsuta). The fresh cap is whitish to greyish, without strong colour bands.
- Velvet bracket (Trametes pubescens). The zones are faint, more in texture than in colour.
- Ochre bracket (Trametes ochracea). The fresh cap is stiff and hard rather than thin and flexible.
How turkey tail is used
Turkey tail is not eaten as food: it is as tough as leather. In China and Japan it has been brewed as an herbal drink for centuries. The whole mushroom is steeped in hot water for a long time and strained; the powder is stirred into warm drinks. The taste is mild and slightly woody.
What the research says
Scientists have studied turkey tail's polysaccharides for decades, including the beta-glucans PSK and PSP. It is an active field of research, and we make no claims about any specific effect on the human body. We sell turkey tail as a food product.
Warnings
Only forage mushrooms for consumption if you can identify the species with certainty. We do not recommend turkey tail during pregnancy or breastfeeding, or with individual intolerance. If you take medication, talk to your doctor first.
Turkey tail at Muhomornya
We offer whole dried turkey tail and turkey tail powder. More mushrooms are in our Functional Mushrooms collection.
