Jew's Ear
JEW'S EAR FUNGUS: Auricularia auricula-judae
This type of fungus is commonly known as Judas's ear fungus or Jew's Ear, the name from which it derives the "judae" in its scientific name, or as the Jelly Ear Fungus.
Habitat: Frequently found on Elder and Beech trees.
Special features: The name comes from the story that Judas Iscariot hung himself from an Elder tree, and this type of fungi is often found growing on elder trees.
It is pale brown in color, and really does resemble a human ear in both size, shape and texture. As it gets older it goes black and hard.
It is one of the few fungi which has the ability to withstand freezing temperatures. It can actually freeze solid, and when thawed out shows no ill effects.
This 10.4-mile hike was the first leg of the Ozark Highlands National Recreation Trail, a 165-mile-long hiking route that crosses a considerable part of northwestern Arkansas, mostly through the 1.2-million-acre Ozark National Forest. May, 2009.