Branching oyster or Pink oyster mushroom

Cap up to 15 cm across, funnel-shaped with a deeply sunken center — the hallmark of the species (hence the name “cornucopiae” — “horn of plenty”). Whitish when young, turning creamy brown or ocher with age. Surface smooth, slightly sticky in wet weather. The margins are often wavy, sometimes raggedly torn.

The cap of the pink oyster mushroom is small — from 2 to 6, rarely up to 10 centimeters across. It is fan-shaped, tongue-shaped or lobed, with a thin, often wavy margin. The surface is smooth or faintly velvety, dry and matte. The color is the species' main glory: bright pink, coral or salmon in young mushrooms, fading with age to pale pink and cream. The mushrooms grow fused in dense, tiered clusters.

The gills run far down the stem and form a distinctive network (“anastomoses”) on the lower part of the stem — the gills interweave like a cobweb. White, cream with age. Spore print white or pale lilac.

The hymenophore is gilled. The gills are pink or pinkish-cream, matching the cap, fairly crowded, running noticeably down the short stem or decurrent to the point of attachment. The spore print is pale pink or lilac. The pink decurrent gills make this species easy to recognize among the oyster mushrooms.

A stem is always present (unlike the oyster mushroom, where it often almost merges with the cap), 3–12 cm tall, 1–2 cm thick. Sometimes branched, central or slightly off-center. White, cream in mature ones. Tough and fibrous in old ones.

The stem is short or almost absent, usually lateral or off-center, pinkish-white; often several mushrooms are fused at a common base into a single cluster. The surface is smooth. There is no ring and no volva. The stem flesh is tougher than the cap, so mostly the caps are eaten.

The flesh is white, springy in young ones, getting tougher with age, especially in the stem. It does NOT change color when cut. The texture is like the oyster mushroom’s, but a little denser and springier.

The flesh is thin, tender, pinkish or whitish, and does not change color when cut. The taste is mild and pleasant; when fried it reminds some people of bacon or seafood. Because the flesh is so thin, young caps are chosen for the table. During cooking the bright pink color almost disappears.

The smell is distinctive — a blend of anise and flour notes over a faint mushroomy base. Stronger in young specimens. The taste is mild, with a hint of hazelnut.

The smell is pleasant, mushroomy, slightly sweetish in fresh specimens. The aroma is not a defining feature; the mushroom is recognized above all by the bright pink-coral color of its caps, its growth in dense clusters on broadleaf wood and its pink decurrent gills.