Angel's wings Pleurocybella porrigens
poisonous
It is pure white, thin-fleshed and grows on conifer wood; in Japan it was linked to fatal poisonings in 2004.
View on the mapIdentification in 5 steps
The olive oysterling is a shell-shaped oyster mushroom with a yellowish stem and an olive-green cap. It is tough and inedible.
SeasonSeptember to December
Spore printwhite
FamilyOmphalotaceae
- Cap. The cap is 3 to 8 cm wide, shell-shaped, olive-green to brown, scaly when damp.
- Underside. The gills are yellowish and run down the stem.
- Stem, ring and volva. The stem is lateral and yellowish, with no ring and no volva.
- Smell and taste. It has no striking smell, and the flesh is tough.
- Flesh and colour change. The flesh is pale and tough, and stays tough when cooked.
Lookalikes
It is tough and inedible and resembles the oyster mushroom.
Oyster mushroom Pleurotus ostreatus
edible
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It smells pleasantly mushroomy and tastes mild, and its spore print is white to pale lilac-grey. The olive oysterling, by contrast, has an olive-green cap, yellowish gills and a yellow stem.
View on the mapLung oyster Pleurotus pulmonarius
edible
It is paler, without blue tones, thinner-fleshed and appears without frost.
View on the mapSide by side
| Olive oysterling | Angel's wings | Oyster mushroom | Lung oyster | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cap | 3 to 8 cm wide, shell-shaped | 2 to 7 cm, ear- to fan-shaped, pure white | 5 to 20 cm, shell- to tongue-shaped, grey to blue-grey | 4 to 12 cm, shell-shaped, pale grey-brown to cream |
| Underside | gills yellowish, running down the stem | gills white, crowded, decurrent | gills white to grey-white, running far down | gills white to cream, decurrent |
| Stem | lateral, yellowish | absent or short, lateral | short, lateral, often absent | short, lateral or absent |
| Flesh | pale, tough, stays tough when cooked | white, thin, soft | white, firm, does not change colour | white, thin-fleshed |
| Edibility | Inedible | poisonous | edible | edible |
Habitat & Season
Stumps and fallen trunks. From the lowlands up to the hills and mountains.
Host trees
Dead deciduous wood, such as beech, oak, elm.
Season
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
possible good main season
Late autumn, on deciduous wood.
Mushroom regions with a daily forecast
There are no records per region for this species yet. The country pages lead to all regions with a daily forecast.
Safety
Never eat a mushroom you have not identified with certainty. Not an edible mushroom: do not collect it for the kitchen.
Advice for your country
Ireland
Poison centre:
National Poisons Information Centre (public line)(01) 809 2166
Emergency: 112 · 999
Germany
Poison centre:
Emergency: 112
Mushroom advice: DGfM: find a mushroom expert. Certified mushroom experts of the German Mycological Society (DGfM).
Collecting rules: Mushrooms that are not specially protected may be collected in small quantities for personal use unless a protected area or ban applies. Certain specially protected edible species (e.g. cep, chanterelle, birch bolete) may be collected in small quantities for personal use.
Austria
Poison centre:
Vergiftungsinformationszentrale (VIZ)01 406 43 43
Emergency: 112 · 144
Mushroom advice: Austrian Mycological Society (ÖMG): mushroom advice. Mushroom advice by the Austrian Mycological Society or regional services such as municipal market offices.
Collecting rules: At most 2 kg of mushrooms per person per day unless the forest owner has prohibited collecting; organised collecting events are prohibited. Additional state rules apply (collecting hours, closed seasons), e.g. Carinthia, Tyrol, Vorarlberg, Salzburg.
Why it is not edible
Tough, no culinary value.
Do not confuse it with the edible oyster mushroom.
Frequently asked questions
Is the olive oysterling edible?
No, the olive oysterling is not edible. It is tough and resembles the oyster mushroom.
When and where does the olive oysterling grow?
The olive oysterling grows from September to December in late autumn on dead deciduous wood, such as beech, oak and elm, on stumps and fallen trunks.
Which look-alikes can the olive oysterling be confused with?
You can confuse it with the oyster mushroom, angel's wings and the lung oyster. The oyster mushroom smells pleasantly mushroomy, tastes mild and has a white to pale lilac-grey spore print, whereas the olive oysterling has an olive-green cap, yellowish gills and a yellow stem. Angel's wings is pure white, thin-fleshed and grows on conifer wood; in Japan it was linked to fatal poisonings in 2004. The lung oyster is paler, has no blue tones, is thinner-fleshed and appears without frost.
How do you recognise the olive oysterling?
The spore print is white. The cap is 3 to 8 cm wide, shell-shaped, olive-green to brown, scaly when damp.
Related species
- Turkey tail Trametes versicolor
- Bitter bolete Tylopilus felleus
- False chanterelle Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca
- Splitgill Schizophyllum commune
- Tinder fungus Fomes fomentarius
- Fleecy milk-cap Lactarius vellereus
Sources
Photo credits
- Photo: Randal · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Angel's wings: Photo: Bernhard Krause · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Oyster mushroom: Photo: Hamilton (Mushroom Observer) · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Lung oyster: Photo: Jose Angel Urquia Goitia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
No substitute for having your finds checked in person. No guarantee of accuracy. Updated: 17.10.2026.