Tony Hardware's Fungi Finds: Okeltor Mines, Cornwall - 8th Sept., Hawkes Wood 10 Sept., Treraven, Wadebridge 16th Sept 2019

I have combined a few visits together here and selected some of the more important finds to show. Firstly, I met with the CFRG and DevonRG annual get together this time on 8th Sept at Okeltor old mines area on the borders of both counties. Being very dry the outcome was lacking in fungi, especially agarics. However, the harder you try the more you find and among some of the fungi recorded I managed to locate a Russula hiding away in the undergrowth, and after the stem turned salmon pink under Iron sulphate and basic macro signs was enough to see this as R. sardonia, or Primrose Brittlegill. At a area that was protected from the sun and near a wood pond most of the good fungi started to be found. Not far from the Russula I almost walked past a group of mushrooms hidden by fern by the path-side. 10 other highly experienced mycologists had just passed this by and when pushing aside the fern I found a group of agarics, most of which suggested Paxillus, probably therefore being P. involutus. Not so. After scrutiny back home and with the help of Pauline Penna and David Farley (DFG) id using ammonia this transpired to be Paxillus ammoniavirescens. This would be 1st for SW of England and 11th in UK, according to available data! Wonderful.
Later on 10th Sept I had a short sojourn up to my local patch at Hawkes Wood once again. Something new always turns up every time I go there. I had just entered the site and tried an area not visited before but awkward to get to, and spotted Calocera cornea after turning a Hazel branch. It looked different so at home checked in the microscope and found something quite remarkable hidden away due to its size. This was very minute 'sticks' with a spore sac atop each 'stick'. Never seen before. Checking Petersen/Laesson's new publication (FTE) this turns out to be a rare small pyrenomycete called Sporothrix polyporicola. I managed to obtain a few microphotos and sent these to BMS. Only one other record I could see in UK!! Also found Botryobasidium aureum with yellow anamorphs showing well.
Later on 16th Sept I visited my local other patch at Treraven Woods, but this time heading for the nearby meadows. Last year hardly any waxcaps were recorded in Cornwall, so nice that I came across a few here in Hygrocybe conica (Blackening), Gliophorus psittacina (Parrot), G. irrigata (Slimy) and Cuphophyllus pratensis (Meadow Waxcap). Will all those lovely gorgeous professional mycologists please get these sc. names right and stick to them as it's driving all the amateur sleuths barmy!! Lastly, I found a nice group of Lactarius pyrogalus or Fiery Milkcap (named after my beloved wife) at Exmoor Zoo, oddly under a Fucshia bush soon after seeing our dearest friend Zoysha, promoted as the 'The Beast of Bodmin Moor'. This is utter rubbish as he is just a friendly beautiful black gene Leopard (not even a Panther) brought up at the zoo years ago. Still if it gets the punters in and helps the zoo ....