Wednesday 9 October 2013

WET KNEES, DIRTY ELBOWS AND A CRICK IN THE NECK






Yes, it's fungi time again!     I always look forward to this time of year when I can get out into the woods in search of these colourful curiosities.


Let me set the scene.....Landscape photographers do it with wide angle lenses and tripods whilst standing and staring, misty eyed, into infinity....Bird photographers do it with mega long lenses whilst sat in a warm and comfortable hide(?)....Fungi photographers do it with macro lenses, bean bags, flash guns, cable releases and reflectors whilst crawling around on all fours, in the darkest and wettest corners of the woods, their arse in the air and their nose almost buried in the smelly, dirty and rotting leaf litter!


Here is a selection of images taken on a couple of recent visits I made to my local woods.




Yellow Stagshorn  (calocera cornea)   Grows in clusters up to 8cm (3in) tall on dead conifer wood.



Shaggy Parasol  (macrolepiota mastoiea)   Can be seen growing in woodlands, parks and gardens. The cap can grow up to 18cm (7in) in diameter.



Verdigris Agaric  (stropharia aeruginosa)   These start off with a blue-green coloured convex and slimy cap that, with age, flattens out to around 8cm (3in) in diameter and develops the yellowish patches as shown here.  Grows to around 10cm (4in) tall and can be found in wooded areas, parklands and gardens. In one of my reference books under the heading that says if its edible or not ....it says...poisonous (probably)...are there any volunteers out there willing to clarify the situation?



Common Funnel  (clitocybe gibba)  With a cap diameter and a height of around 8cm (3in) this, as the name suggests, is one of the most commonly found funnels, in deciduous woodland and grassy areas.



Lilac Bonnet  (mycena pura)  This fungi is very variable in size and colour and this is possibly the pink form (mycena rosea) it crows to about 8cm (3in) tall with a cap measuring 5cm (2in) diameter. Grows in mixed woodland but is mostly associated with Beech.



Rooting Shank  (xerula radicata)  This 20cm (8in) tall early fruiting Shank is very deep rooted and has a cap diameter of 10cm (4in) It grows on buried wood.



Rufous Milkcap  (lactarius rufus)  this is one of the large family of Milkcaps that derive their name from the way that their cap and gills exude a milky looking (the colour varies between species)  type of latex when damaged.  8cm (3in) tall with a cap diameter of 10cm (4in) this particular Milkcap is closely associated with acid conifer woods. 



Burgundydrop Bonnet  (mycena haematopus)  When damaged or broken this Bonnet releases a red coloured liquid, hence the name. It grows to around 7cm (3in) high with a 4cm (1 1/2in) diameter cap that starts off conical and then develops into a flatter bell shape. Grows on decayed deciduous wood.



Sticky Scalycap  (pholiota gummosa)  15cm (6in) tall with a 10cm (4in) diameter flattened cap. Grows in clusters, this small cluster was part of a large ring, on decayed or buried wood of deciduous trees.



Chestnut Dapperling  (lepiota castanea)  A small Dapperling with a distinctive colour, The 5cm (2in) diameter cap starts off conical and gradually flattens out.  Grows to a height of around 5cm (2in) in deciduous woods. It is deadly poisonous causing liver and kidney damage if ingested.



Candlesnuff Fungus  (xylaria hypoxylon) This very common fungus can be found year round growing on the dead wood of broadleaved trees. It gets its name by the fact that its appearance resembles a burnt candle wick. The fruiting body grows up to 6cm (2 1/2in) high.



Common Puffball  (lycoperdon perlatum)  The distinctive apical pore, the dark coloured circular patch on the top, helps separate this from other similar puffballs. Grows to around 9cm (3 1/2in) tall and is very common in most woodland. The body is pear shaped with a thick, stumpy stalk; white when young (as here) and covered with conical spines that are slowly discarded as it turns brown with age.



Angel's Bonnet  (mycena arcangeliana)  This  greyish-yellow bonnet, that gives of a smell similar to that of iodine, grows to around 7cm (3in) tall with a cap, that starts off conical then becomes bell-shaped, of around 5cm (2in) diameter. It grows in clusters, sometimes large, on decaying deciduous wood, typically Beech or Ash.



** As we know mother nature often doesn't conform to the shape, colour and size that is prescribed to the things that we find around us, taking this into account the above ID's are accurate to the best of my ability, I'm a long way off from being an expert!  So, if anyone thinks that I may have got something wrong or has more accurate knowledge  please feel free,  your comments would be much appreciated...I won't be upset...honest!!




18 comments:

Bob Bushell said...

You're good at this, beautiful. I would like to photo them. Ah well, I'll leave that job to you.

The Herald said...

Thank you Bob, I'm sure you'll be able to get some with that long lens of yours?...[;o)

Carole M. said...

fascinating photos; such a grand variety of fungi. So you do get down and dirty Trevor?! You and me both are sharing that cricked-neck syndrome at the moment. Hard to say which was my favourite but I liked the Common Funnel very much.

holdingmoments said...

A post worth waiting for Trevor.
A fine selection of fungi.

Douglas Mcfarlane said...

Can't comment on the id's Trevor, but the images and variety of fungi is amazing, I begining to realise I'm walking around with my eyes shut half the time, time to leave the warmth of the hide and look a bit harder

ADRIAN said...

You underestimate your ability and knowledge.
These are all excellent you have set a standard for we mere mortals to aspire to.

The Herald said...

Thanks Carole, I'm pleased that you liked the post. Yea, it does you good to get down and dirty once in a while! I hope your neck isn't giving you too many problems...[;o)


Thanks Keith...[;o)


Thanks Douglas. One good thing about photographing fungi is that they don't fly off just as you get focused on them! It's amazing what you can discover when you're crawling around in the leaf litter!...[;o)


Thanks Adrian. I think you give me more credit than I deserve, these could have been much better...[;o)

ADRIAN said...

No Trevor, they are all great shots but the last one of the Angels Bonnet is a world beater. It is probably a good job you save them up or I would give up.

The Herald said...

Thanks Adrian, that's praise indeed.
Whatever you do, never give up!...[;o)

Roy Norris said...

Fabulous images Trevor. They make great subject.
I thought the heading was going to be about something else.??{:))

theconstantwalker said...

Excellent images and information Trevor... I can imagine the washing machine was put to god use afterwards.
Love the new blog header.

The Herald said...

Thank you Roy. I hope I didn't mislead you with the heading!!...[;o)

Thanks Andrew, Yeh, the washing machine is working flat out these days!!...[;o)

FOREST SNAPPER said...

That is a set of images to be proud of Trevor, great header too.


peter

The Herald said...

Thanks very much Peter...[;o)

Heather Wilde said...

Wow these are amazing, The first one, the Yellow Stagshorn, looks like it should be a coral reef. I love your main blog banner too x

The Herald said...

Thanks for the lovely comments Heather...[;o)

Margaret Birding For Pleasure said...

HI Trevor Just came across this post, I think I didn't see it before because Eileen was here at the time and I had no time to look at ANY posts then. Anyway, all the shots of fungi are amazing. I have to admit I do not know the names of any fungi however I love to see and photograph them.

The Herald said...

Thanks Margaret, I'm glad you liked the images. I find fungi a fascinating subject...[;o)