Medium to large, tough agaric, growing on wood, presumably with white spore print. Pileus brown or black, deeply cyathiform, non-viscid. Lamellae decurrent, pale becoming brown or black, very shallow and ridge-like with obtuse, sterile edges. Stipe central. Partial veil remnants absent. Spores ellipsoid, hyaline, non-amyloid, smooth; germ pore absent. Cheilocystidia present or absent. Lamellar trama interwoven. Pileipellis a trichoderm, with a erect hyphae, highly branched at the tips. Clamp connections present.

Similar in appearance to Lentinus sajor-caju, but differentiated from that species by the very dark fruit-body at maturity, the ridge-like lamellae, the ellipsoid rather than cylindrical spores, and the pileipellis with coralloid hyphae.

Austrolentinus Ryvarden, Syn. Fung. 5: 115 (1991).

One species: Austrolentinus tenebrosus (= Panus, = Lentinus).

Austrolentinus tenebrosus (Corner) Ryvarden, Syn. Fung. 5: 115 (1991).

Qld (and possibly also northern W.A. and N.T.).

In native forests.

On dead wood.

Saprotrophic (rot type unknown).

Corner, E.J.H. (1981), The agaric genera Lentinus, Panus and Pleurotus with particular reference to Malaysian species, Beih. Nova Hedwigia 69: 1–169. [Description and Microcharacters of A. tenebrosus (as Panus)]

Pegler, D.N. (1983b), The genus Lentinus: a world monograph, Kew Bull., Addit. Ser. 10: 1–281. [Description, B&W Illustration and Microcharacters of A. tenbrosus (as Lentinus)]

Ryvarden, L. (1991), Genera of Polypores. Nomenclature and Taxonomy [Synopsis Fungorum 5]. Fungiflora, Oslo. [Description of the genus Austrolentinus]