As with other tooth fungi, the spores are produced on spines on the underside of the cap, rather than gills.

It has a funnel-shaped cap, typically between 2 and 7 cm (0.79 and 2.76 in) in diameter, which has characteristic concentric zones of color.

The spines are pink in young specimens, but turn brown with age.

This species is very similar in appearance to Hydnellum scrobiculatum, and traditionally, largely unreliable microscopic characteristics such as spore size and ornamentation have been used to distinguish between the two.

Recent research has demonstrated a way to discriminate the two species using DNA sequencing of the ITS regions.