● Species profile
Birch Polypore
Fomitopsis betulina
Photo: Captainpixel, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
A smooth white bracket that grows only on birch. Ötzi the Iceman carried pieces of it about 5,300 years ago, and lab studies show antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory activity. Bitter and corky, so it's brewed as tea.
Historical Use and Context
Ötzi the Iceman, who died in the Alps about 5,300 years ago, carried two pieces of birch polypore threaded on a leather strap. Researchers think it was medicine: the fungus has compounds active against intestinal parasites, and his gut held whipworm eggs.
It has had practical uses too. Its tough, smooth flesh was used to sharpen razors, which gave it the English name razor strop fungus.
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