Stara Woods, Nr Bathpool, East Cornwall - 11th November 2018

As part of the Stara Woods Community Support and Cornwall Fungus Recording Grp I attended this beautiful ancient woodland buried in the east centre of Cornwall, with mixed woodland species and glorious views once above the canopy. Visiting the Colquite, Broad and Treovis woodlands we were able to gather between us approx 47 species of fungi. Two of which were to be found to be rare, one possibly first for Cornwall if not the South West. Soon after the start and a very steep climb the local group had put on a very welcomed tea/coffee and cakes in the middle of the wood. During my time spent here  staring at which cake to avoid I picked up what could only be the less common Laccaria species of L. tortilis, or Twisted Deceiver. I don't think it was a politician, but you never know. Pholiota spumosa was growing out of rotting cut conifer logs just left of the drizzle cake. On the descent back I came across the delightful tiny mycena (Bonnet) in m. pseudocorticola found in many places where there was abundant moss on Beech. While inspecting a very old log pile near the river, I turned over a large log to show a resupinate showing a lilac coloured and flattened teeth. Pauline Penna (PP) ID'ed this later as the uncommon Ceripora excelsa (see pic). Lastly, while lazily checking out a hanging vine branch that was strangling a tree and seeing various crepidotus sps., there appeared a tiny grey cup fungi massed in a small area and needed a hand glass to see that these were a small discomycete species, not recorded often, being Proliferodiscus pulveraceous after research by PP. This has a yellow centre with white edging around the cup but goes greyer in older material. 

Ceriporia excelsa - uncommon polypore on beech log

Laccaria tortilis - Twisted Deceiver

Proliferodiscus pulveraceous - uncommon minute discomycete with yellow centre.

Clavulina coralloides - Crested Coral

Mycena pseudocorticola - on damp mossy trees

Mystery cup fungus, very small and
probably one of the many Peziza species
found in the UK.

Pholiota spumosa - on cut conifer
logs near the tea urn!

Tricholoma ustale - Burnt Knight