Lion's mane and cold weather Trametes mushrooms: Identify lumpy white fungi in the trees

In this video, I show off a marvelous specimen of the lion's mane mushroom, Hericium erinaceus. Lion's mane is a delicious edible species and shines in dishes like mushroom "crab" cakes. I discuss how to find and identify lion's mane in the wild, including some notes about tough, toothy crust fungi that are sometimes mistaken for immature Hericium.

Next, I talk about a few species of Trametes mushrooms you can find in winter. Here's the line-up:

1. Turkey tail–Trametes versicolor–is the most well-known species in the genus and sports fuzzy, colorful bands on the surface of the cap. I also compare turkey tail to similar-looking parchment fungi in the Stereum genus and show how to differentiate them.
2. Two lumpy, zoned white bracket fungi called Trametes gibbosa and Trametes aesculi. Although hard as rocks and fairly plain on their own, these two species have cool-looking elongated or maze-like structures underneath the cap. They also often have green stripes and patches of algae, which accentuates the bracket's lumpy growth zones.
3. Trametes betulina, commonly called the gilled polypore. This perplexing common name is a contradiction in terms. However, Trametes betulina is a beautiful and easily recognized mushroom with gill-like structures under a fuzzy, zoned cap. The undersurface is quite variable, sometimes forming hypnotic, maze-like patterns. Mycologists call this feature "daedaloid," which is a reference to the mythic Greek architect Daedalus. This makes perfect sense; Daedalus built the labyrinth to trap the bull-headed, monstrous Minotaur. Though Trametes betulina isn't suitable for trapping mythical beasts of any sort, it is a delightful turkey tail lookalike with gentle pastel colors that remind me of a granny's curtains and matching hand towels.