Morchella esclenta & semilibera

"The Polyporaceae

Like the Boletes, the Polypores store their spores in tubes, but they differ in substance (usually woody or leathery); also, some are perennial and capable of producing new tubes and indefinite growth. Those growing from the ground may be stemmed, as above; those from wood are usually stemless. some may be tree-killers, they transform into shelves, conks, or woody carpets swarming over trunk and branches leaving the host tree with heart rot, and prone to premature collapse. Almost all, however, as decomposers of dead wood, are essential to forest health and continuance; their shapes, whether elegant or grotesque, inform the death of trees with new life and fantastic ornamentation."

In publication, Page 86: "Reflections on the Fungaloids" by B.L. Williamson, Ottawa, 1992. ISBN 1-894572-65-3