You would normally expect December to be fairly lacking in Fungi but whether it's the changing climate or just my Christmas fairy again then this month was quite exciting. During this time I had two surveys of National Trust fields/park which helped, during a quick walk down from Waitrose by the river Frome I was able to find only the 2nd record in the UK of an unusual discomycete. Early in the month I went down my local patch, which is a Willow/Alder Carr habitat and at first not seeing a great deal, I did see what appeared to be a flagging Mycena growing off a fallen Alder branch. Should I check this .. well better had. This turned into Arrhenia rickenii, with widely spaced gills and looked like a gone over Mycena. However, this is how they appear when mature and delighted I had persevered. Whilst checking out a resupinate in my back garden (there's always something there) I found (also new for Gloucs) Bactrodesmium spilomen growing in and under Lagarobasidium detriticum, again new for Gloucs and only eight other UK records. Perhaps not so rare as do many field mycologists look at hyphomycetes? They were on an old rotten piece of fencing on the ground. Amazing what you can find in the garden. Pays not to be too clean-n-tidy. In 2018 I had a new British ascomycete species on a decorative non-native plant species. And so to a quick walk by the River Frome with easy parking at my local Waitrose! I came across a recently half-fallen large moss-covered Alder near the river which allowed me to see far higher up the tree than you would normally have access to. Here I found some tiny discomycetes growing in a very small group, just about visible which would have been growing quite high in the tree normally. After careful examination and checking with AscoFrance this turned into the 2nd only record for the UK for Calycium vulgaris. Also here I found a smooth but 'lumpy' resupinate growing on bark/moss which I spent hrs on later and still couldn't identify. Shown here in case known to anyone. Has sub-cylindrical spores and pigmentation spots within most hyphae. At Cirencester Park I found another new species for Gloucs in Dendrothele griseocana as well as Leptosphaeria ogilviensis. More recently, in fact on Christmas Eve in nearby Park Woods at Thrupp (1st visit) I was surprised to see the woodland had been decimated by around 60% and cleared leaving some Ash/Beech still standing. Looking through the debris I found some originally rotten Birch on the ground, the only one I could find in fact. Under here were fascinating separated several groups of a tiny Basidomycete which appeared to be like small white pipes growing vertically at around 2mm high. This ended up as only the 5th UK record as it became the less common Henningsomyces puber species, after careful examination which showed the more downy covered fruitbody. It generally only grows on Betula. A quick trip to the Cemetery near me, which is what you always want to do, I found Hyphodermella corrugata which has one other Gloucs. record followed by a trip to Juniper Hill near Slad. I was able to see and study one of the last Basidiocarps of the year for me growing by a very old Prunus tree. This was a group of Leucoagarigcus pilatianus, new for me and Gloucs. In Box woods I found Scopuloides leprosa with just 3 other UK records (this has unique two types cystidia, both smooth and encrusted) as well as other distinguishing features. Last, but not least, during one of my surveys with the NTrust, this time at Clump Farm (restricted site) on rabbit dung with damp culturing arose Pilbolus kleinii - again new for Gloucs. But who looks at dung these days! NB: Here we found 40-50 Pink Ballerina (Porpolomopis calyptriformis) waxcaps growing on a single NE facing field slope. One is great enough, which I also found at another NT site near Sherbourne also this month. The aforementioned site is just inside Worcestershire but must be the best site in the county for this species. While at Clump Farm, I recorded an Earthtongue. These are normally recorded on occasion in the right habitat on short grassy moors or by the coast but in middle England? Well this was to be Geoglossum cookeanum, just one, even more unusual in the middle of a long grassy field. Still new for Worcestershire! Lastly, for a quick walk off the Xmas pud. then a short visit to Climperwell Woods paid off nicely with finding Thanatephorus fusisporus resupinate on Fagus branch, growing off a knuckle joint only. This has amazing large basidia and sterigmata. Also has Amygdaloid/Navicular spores. Unmistakeable, but rarish - new for Gloucs.
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| Arrhenia rickenii |
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| Bactrodesmium spilomen |
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| Calycina vulgaris |
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| Calycina vulgaris spores |
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| Dendrothole griseocana |
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| Dendrothole griseocana spores |
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| Henningsomyces puber |
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| Henningsomyces puber spores |
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| Henningsomyces puber x40 NB: Downy 100% tubes |
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| Hyphodermella corrugata spores |
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| Hyphodermella corrugata |
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| Lagardbasidium detriticum crystals |
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| Lagardbasidium detriticum |
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| Lagardbasidium detriticum spores |
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| Leptosphaeria ogilviensis |
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| Leptosphaeria ogilviensis |
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| Leucoagaricus pilatianus |
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| Leucoagaricus pilatianus |
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| Mystery resupinate on Alnus bark/moss |
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| Pilobolus kleinii on Rabbit dung |
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| Pilobolus kleinii |
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| Scopuloides leprosa in drying state |
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| Scopuloides leprosa metaloids |
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| Scopuloides leprosa smooth cys. |
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| Thanatephorus fusisporus basidia |
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| Thanatephorus fusisporus |
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| Thanatephorus fusisporus spores x1000 |
