California alder vs Clustered Bracket

Alnus rhombifolia compared with Inonotus cuticularis

Key Differences

• California alder is Least Concern while Clustered Bracket is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	California alder	Clustered Bracket
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Fungi (Fungi)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Basidiomycota (Club Fungi)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Agaricomycetes (Mushrooms)
Order	Fagales (Beeches & Oaks)	Hymenochaetales (Hymenochaetales)
Family	Betulaceae	Hymenochaetaceae
Genus	Alnus	Inonotus
Species	Alnus rhombifolia	Inonotus cuticularis

Conservation Status

California alder

LC — Least Concern

Clustered Bracket

VU — Vulnerable

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	California alder	Clustered Bracket
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

California alder

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Found in Canada.

Clustered Bracket

Habitat

Typically found in forest floors, decomposing wood, and soil ecosystems.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (4 countries), and North America (United States). Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

California alder

The California alder (Alnus rhombifolia) is a species in the genus Alnus. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Clustered Bracket

Inonotus cuticularis, the clustered bracket, is a polypore fungus in the family Hymenochaetaceae that grows on living and dead hardwood trees across the northern hemisphere. The fruiting bodies are bracket-shaped, overlapping in tiered clusters, with a yellowish-brown to rusty-brown upper surface that darkens with age, and a pale to golden pore surface beneath. This species causes white heart rot in its host trees, degrading the structural integrity of trunks and major branches. It commonly attacks living oaks, beeches, and other broadleaf trees, as well as occurring on dead wood. Inonotus cuticularis is listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN, reflecting its association with old-growth and veteran trees that are increasingly rare in managed European and North American landscapes. The decline of old-growth forest and the removal of veteran trees from managed woodlands and parklands has reduced suitable habitat for many bracket fungi. Conservation of ancient and veteran trees is therefore important for maintaining populations of this and many other wood-decay fungi with similar old-growth associations.