Black Maple vs Cinnabar Oysterling

Acer nigrum compared with Crepidotus cinnabarinus

Key Differences

Black Maple is Least Concern while Cinnabar Oysterling is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Black Maple	Cinnabar Oysterling
Kingdom	Plantae (植物)	Fungi (菌界)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (被子植物門)	Basidiomycota (担子菌門)
Class	Magnoliopsida (モクレン綱)	Agaricomycetes (真正担子菌綱)
Order	Sapindales (ムクロジ目)	Agaricales (ハラタケ目)
Family	Sapindaceae	Crepidotaceae
Genus	Acer	Crepidotus
Species	Acer nigrum	Crepidotus cinnabarinus

Conservation Status

Black Maple

LC — Least Concern

Cinnabar Oysterling

VU — Vulnerable

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Black Maple	Cinnabar Oysterling
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Black Maple

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Canada and United States.

Cinnabar Oysterling

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and United States. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Black Maple

The Black Maple (Acer nigrum) is a species in the genus Acer. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Cinnabar Oysterling

Cinnabar oysterling (Crepidotus cinnabarinus) is a brightly colored bracket fungus in the family Crepidotaceae, found in Europe and North America, typically on dead deciduous wood including fallen logs, branches, and stumps in humid woodland settings. It is one of the more visually distinctive members of the genus, with vivid orange-red to cinnabar-red fruiting bodies—far more colorful than most Crepidotus species, which are typically pale and inconspicuous. The fruiting bodies are small, fan-shaped to kidney-shaped caps with a lateral attachment to the substrate, white gills that become pinkish-brown as spores mature, and no stalk. Crepidotus cinnabarinus is classified as Vulnerable, reflecting population declines associated with the loss of dead wood habitat in managed forests across Europe and parts of North America. Saproxylic fungi of this type depend on old-growth or mature woodland conditions with abundant coarse woody debris. Intensive forest management that removes deadwood and fallen logs significantly reduces habitat quality. The species is found in old-growth deciduous forest remnants and is an indicator of high conservation value woodland. Conservation measures include the retention of deadwood during forestry operations and the protection of ancient and veteran trees. Its striking coloration makes it a memorable indicator species for woodland ecologists.