Tony Hardware's Fungi Finds

Sunday, 3 May 2026

APRIL - Uncommon to rare species recorded this month

This month includes a few virtually new species for the UK but are hyphomycetes, one of the least recorded classes of fungi. As the many species I have found over the years the excitement of finding something new evaporates quickly when you know not many people are looking for or recording these types of fungus. A pity really, as they can be quite easy sometimes to identify as they are normally very different from each other and have unique growth factors. So first up is one, this was found on dead needles of Douglas Fir in Cirencester Park. It appears that the local conservation foresters had been busy and had tried to take out most of the infected needle growth. One was Allantophomopsiella pseuodotsugae (try saying that after two whiskeys!) showing unusual conidiophores in blocks. 2nd record UK. Another would be Nothophaeocryptopus gaeumannii (try saying that after one whiskey!) again on needles (3rd UK record) followed by the reddening Rhabdocline pseudotsugae, (again 3rd record UK). Still with the same trees, then an resupinate in Aphanobasidium pseudotsugae was found the whole length under one cut down trunk showing sub-amygdaliform spores, something normally associated with Cortinarius or Hebeloma species. Few other Gloucs records. A visit to Westonbirt Arboretum on Pinus was a bluish/grey cottony resupinate became Arachnocrea stipata, but I saw no spiders. Interestingly this species has the unusual split spores of two identical triangles, easily disturbed when observing. Also here but on a woodchip/soil mix was a solitary Pluteus podospileus basidiocarp, with pleurocystidia and very tight free stem apex, unlike most others of this genus. A visit to Westridge Woods near Wooton-under-Edge for some time showed a recently devasted area of larch had been cut with wood debris everywhere. Good for me in some respects but hard to understand why this had happened. On the common resupinate Skeletocutis vulgaris I found lots of another hypho. Cheiromycella microscopia. 2nd Gloucs. Also on larch was Lachnellula resinaria with a few other records for Gloucs. I had found an unusual ascomycete in my back garden on dead mint stems in early February and it took me some time to work this out and now newly recognised as Fusarium sambucinum (was Gibberella pulicaris). This has unusual 1-3 septate spores with the excipulum bluing even in water. 1st Gloucs record. A trip to NW Devon was necessary to visit my sister in hospital and stayed at the Caesar's Inn, Barnstaple. No casino, so went looking for fungi in the delightful garden full of different tree types. On a single stem of Rubus fruticosus I eventually worked out Didymosphaeria oblitescens (10th UK record) which has wonderful finely verrucose spores with a single heavy constricted septa. Also here was a hypho. in Endophragmia pinicola on Pinus needles. Also on these needles was Gremmenia infestans also known as Snow Mould, oddly given a common name with only this record in the UK. I must have the wrong species or something?! Also here was another hypho. Solicorynespora foveolata on Pseudosasa japonica (Bamboo). 4th Uk record. At Flisteridge Woods (Wilts) I found the miniscule discomycete Hyaloscypha quercicola - 1st for Wilts although recorded before in Gloucs a few times. Also Stomiopeltis betulae, 3rd for Wilts. Exploring a new woody glade at Bushy Grove near the River Severn and with oak growing in good numbers I found Mollisia olivascens on a rotten oak branch. This species has very hairy flanks and can almost be identified visually.

Nothophaeocryptopus gaeumannii

Mollisia olivascens

Allantophomopsiella pseudotsugae

Aphanobasidium pseudotsugae

Arachnocrea stipata

Cheiromycella microscopica

Didymosphaeria oblitescens

Endophragmia pinicola

Fusarium sambucinum

Gremmenia infestans

Lachnellula resinaria

Pluteus podospileus

Rhabdocline pseudotsugae

Solicorynespora foveolata

Stomiopeltis betulae

Thursday, 2 April 2026

MARCH 2026 - Uncommon to rare species recorded this month

Well I still managed 3 new species for the county this month, as well as some interesting asco/discomycetes and one splendid basidiomycete after spending 10 days in Arizona, our 18th visit there since 1998! So I think we like it there. Not much fungi in the desert but bird life terrific, ice-cream even better. Starting at Cirencester Woods, one of my local patches, I found Athelia acrospora which would be 3rd record for West England. On Lawson's Cypress and with lots of short basidia. Also here was the tiny asco. with a few long setae on the same substrate was Berlesiella nigerrima and 2nd for Gloucs. On a waste grass rotting mound also here was the delightfully hairy Coprinopsis macrocephala and 1st for Gloucs. A trip into Wiltshire at Flisteridge Woods (where else!) and after diving deep into the Juncus growing in damp patches on the pathways was the diminutive Cistella fugiens. This on J. effusus and 1st for Wiltshire. Perhaps tiny is too large as it was only 0.1mm wide at the base of the stems. Fortunately 0.1mm is quite large in the scope! The bright and numerous disco. Hydropisphaeria peziza was growing inside a opened trunk of what appeared to be a living Rhododendron tree. Seen before but isn't common. At a new location for me I visited both sides of the Thames Path at Kemble, a place I have driven pass countless times. The above species was here along with Lachnum impudicum on Salix caprea close to the river as you would expect. Uncommon and recorded before. Along to Cambridge village and the marshes beyond close to the River Severn I came upon a row of trees I couldn't recognise at all. Photographing the leaves helped and came down to Populus x-generosa beaupre, a very tall straight white trunked tree but with heavy gouges at all sorts of angles planted by the river. Here I found once again a Peniophora species mostly no one else finds. However, I have checked many times and can't be anything except P. boidinii. 3rd UK, but after my previous two finds! Opps. Short and many lamprocystidia, pointy short gloeocystidia and clamps strongly suggest this species. While here I came upon a bundle of fallen mistletoe, which isn't that common on the ground and checking every inch found hyphomycete Sphaeropsis visci at some end sections. On a trip to Climperwell Woods and with Laura Dutton, I found Psathyrella longicauda, almost by accident as it appeared to look like any other woodland Psathyrella. Checking closely then the rooting base, white edged gills and large spores sealed this ID. 1st for Gloucs and only 23 other UK records. Also here on a myxo. Trichia scabra we found the parasitic growth of Stilbella byssiseda on one small section - 1st for Gloucs. I have found this here before but lost the record somehow. Back at Kemble a frosted looking resupinate proved to be Stypella glaira, one with longitudinal basidia and 3rd for Gloucs. Lastly, also here but on Hogweed was the tiny Urceolella crispula, a delightful white star like fungus and under the scope looks terrific. See pic. Fairly uncommon but probably due to being overlooked as so small.