What's this Fungus?

Found this colourful fungus growing at the base of a large mature Oak at work today.
I assume it's some kind of bracket fungus.
I've searched through a couple of my fungus identification books and the only ones which really come close are the stereum fungi, but I'm still not convinced.
I know we have a few fungus fans on here, so I'm confident somebody can ID this one for me.

 

Wotcha Trunky,

Looks like Chicken of the Woods.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laetiporus

 

Thanks for that Zig. From the link, it looks like Laetiporus sulphureus.
Took you all of three minutes this time, you're slipping mate.

 

Next time i'll just zap straight in there without checking my suspicions first

 

If the council saw that on a tree around here, it would be cut down in about a week.

 

Good job it's in a private garden then Pete.
It's quite a magnificent specimen, we reckon it's the oldest tree on the estate, probably a good three or four hundred years old, possibly more.
I note from Zig's link that the fungus can cause brown rot to set in on the host tree, which would be a shame. At present the tree itself looks in fairly good health for such an old Oak, we'll keep an eye on it though.

 

Don't eat it if its growing on a Yew, or you will die of death.

 

I did a course on Ancient Trees, its suprising just how much of a tree can rot away and not kill it.

 

That's good to know.
We're not unduly concerned about the old Oak at present, it's a good sturdy specimen which still appears to be healthy.
In addition to the fungus, it's got rabbits living in a burrow directly underneath the main trunk.
I should think it's seen off any number of pests and parasites over the years, so a bit of fungus and a few bunnies probably aren't going to be a major problem.

 

Brown rot?
If that is the fungus that forms what is known as brown oak, then the tree could be worth a bit.
Brown oak veneers are sought after.

I've seen something very similar growing on a yew.
A lot of people have been known to die of death.

 

Never known anyone to survive it.

 

Hi pete,

Just a note to clarify; brown rot is caused by wood-decaying fungi that break down the cellulose and hemicellulose in cells, leaving only the lignin intact. What remains is stiff, but relatively brittle, cubicles of brown wood, with little or no flexibility - hence the name. The 'brown oak' used for woodwork, joinery and carving is made from healthy, fungus-free heartwood; the internal wood of the tree that no longer has any function and is, in essence, dead but not decayed.

Hope this makes some sort of sense.

Cheers,
Matthew

 

Thanks Harmony, but I think the actual "brown oak" I'm referring to is not normal heart wood, we only use the heart wood anyway, sapwood is thrown away.

I've seen streaks of it in normal oak heartwood, its much darker brown than normal.

Just found this,http://www.christianoreilly.com/english-brown-oak

 

Sorry, Pete - I stand corrected. I assumed, wrongly, you were on about the brown-rot caused by the Laetiporus in the original post.

 

Yeah' sorry I ramble off the plot a bit sometimes