Sarcoscypha coccinea

Scarlet elf cup, scarlet elf cap, scarlet cup, ερυθρό κύπελλο, σαρκοσκύφη η κόκκινη. The fungus, widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere, has been found in Africa, Asia, Europe, North and South America, and Australia. Due to similar physical appearances and sometimes overlapping distributions, Sarcoscypha coccinea has often been confused with Sarcoscypha occidentalis, Sarcoscypha austriaca, and Sarcoscypha dudleyi.

The saprobic fungus grows on decaying sticks and branches in damp spots on forest floors, generally buried under leaf litter or in the soil. The cup-shaped fruit bodies are usually produced during the cooler months of winter and early spring. The brilliant red interior of the cups—from which both the common and scientific names are derived—contrasts with the lighter-colored exterior. The edibility of the fruit bodies is not clearly established, but its small size, tough texture and insubstantial fruitings would dissuade most people from collecting for the table. The fungus has been used medicinally by the Oneida Native Americans, and also as a colorful component of table decorations in England. Molliardiomyces eucoccinea is the name given to the imperfect form of the fungus that lacks a sexually reproductive stage in its life cycle.

A saprobic species, Sarcoscypha coccinea grows on decaying woody material from various plants: the rose family, beech, hazel, willow, elm, and, in the Mediterranean, oak. The fruit bodies of S. coccinea are often found growing singly or clustered in groups on buried or partly buried sticks in deciduous forests. A Hungarian study noted that the fungus was found mainly on twigs of European hornbeam (Carpinus betulus) that were typically less than 5 cm (2.0 in) long. Fruit bodies growing on sticks above the ground tend to be smaller than those on buried wood. Mushrooms that are sheltered from wind also grow larger than their more exposed counterparts. The fruit bodies are persistent and may last for several weeks if the weather is cool. The time required for the development of fruit bodies has been estimated to be about 24 weeks, although it was noted that "the maximum life span may well be more than 24 weeks because the decline of the colonies seemed to be associated more with sunny, windy weather rather than with old age." One field guide calls the fungus "a welcome sight after a long, desperate winter and ... the harbinger of a new year of mushrooming.

Common over much of the Northern Hemisphere, S. coccinea occurs in the Midwest, in the valleys between the Pacific coast, the Sierra Nevada, and the Cascade Range. Its North American distribution extends north to various locations in Canada and south to the Mexican state Jalisco. The fungus has also been collected from Chile in South America. It is also found in the Old World—Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, and India. Specimens collected from the Macaronesian islands that once thought to be S. coccinea were later determined to be the distinct species S. macaronesica. A 1995 study of the occurrence of British Sarcoscypha (including S. coccinea and S. austriaca) concluded that S. coccinea was becoming very rare in Great Britain. All species of Sarcoscypha, including S. coccinea, are Red-Listed in Europe.

Sarcoscypha coccinea was used as a medicinal fungus by the Oneida people and possibly by other tribes of the Iroquois Six Nations. The fungus, after being dried and ground up into a powder, was applied as a styptic, particularly to the navels of newborn children that were not healing properly after the umbilical cord had been severed. Pulverized fruit bodies were also kept under bandages made of soft-tanned deerskin. In Scarborough, England, the fruit bodies used to be arranged with moss and leaves and sold as a table decoration.

The species is said to be edible, inedible, or "not recommended", depending on the author. Although its insubstantial fruit body and low numbers do not make it particularly suitable for the table, one source claims "children in the Jura are said to eat it raw on bread and butter; and one French author suggests adding the cups, with a little Kirsch, to a fresh fruit salad." The fruit bodies have been noted to be a source of food for rodents in the winter, and slugs in the summer.