Uneven, rounded fungus that has a resemblance to burnt buns (hence the reference to King Alfred’s Cakes).  Irregularly rounded or knob-like, firmly attached to the substrate without a stem;  The head begins as a reddish-brown (first capture) before turning bluish-black (following captures). Dusted with fallen spores on maturity, these rubbing off to leave a shiny surface. Flesh is tough a leathery when fresh but becoming brittle and charcoal-like with age. It grows solitary or in groups on dead wood of deciduous trees, virtually exclusively Ash.

Porthkerry Wood, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales