Black Jelly Drops: Identification, Lookalikes, and Edibility

When you find Black Jelly Drops (Bulgaria inquinans), you may think you’ve discovered someone’s black licorice gumdrop stash in the forest! These fungi are jet-black, rubbery discs that cluster on the bark and wood of fallen oak logs and look, for all the world, like the candy that gives them their common name. Black jelly drops aren’t toxic or poisonous, but they aren’t eaten either. They are extremely rubbery in texture and, on top of that, they stain the fingers jetblack when handled.