Tony Hardware's Fungi Finds: 2024

Tuesday, 3 December 2024

NOVEMBER 2024 - Uncommon to rare species recorded

November continued to be a barren month, as has been most of this Autumn, more so than many, many years of late. We all know why, but no-one I know disagrees that fungi failed to turn up this year as you would expect. Is it too much rain, too early, too hot at a certain time, carbon related, etc? Either way I noticed around just two weeks in October were anything like previous years. Let's hope next year changes. However, I still managed to identify a new discomycete for the UK, more of which comes later. I found a few interesting species still in November from my BMS trip into The Forest of Dean. The first was an uninspiring Hebeloma which appeared at first to be like all common species of this genus. This one under microscopy provided cheilocystidia, spores and macro features to a safe deduction of Hebeloma ebuneum. What is surprising is that this has only one other UK record - mine! Worrying! However, nothing else fits and I stick with what I see, not what might be, and so that's it! I also provide the evidence in the record depository at FRDBI for all to exam, which has the capability of response. 95% of all records on FRDBI do not provide evidence at all, which I find worrying, especially when records were recorded, or the substrate that was found at the time. Moving on - the other species was found back at Highnam Woods (out of FoDean) which to me was a rare Cortinarius ominosus at Newent Woods. This would be 3rd in UK! and takes me back to my previous statement. The spores were too large and with a more prominent umbo, blackening stem in KOH, singular and so the common look-a-like C. semisanguineus went out the window. I wouldn't be surprised that within the many visual only records for the latter, there are lots of the former, so not making the former so rare. At my favourite, 'help where do I go its so bad' location, Cirencester Park came up as usual with a few interesting species. On a stack of grass mulch but protected from the weather within woodland I found Narcissea patouillardii, although not that uncommon. A couple of resupinates turned out to be Vesiculomyces citrinus (on Larix) but the third time I have found this in Gloucs., so now 3rd record for the county! Also Ceraceomyces crispatus which has verticillate clamps, this being 2nd for Gloucs. My first visit to the village of Edgeworth provided Cristinia helvetica but on Laural, so a nice surprise. A short run around my local patch just down from Waitrose, the local nature group Stroud Valley Projects had been working hard again and had cleared away a lot of bramble etc., leaving access to old herb stems and twigs. On Ash, I found at home after careful study (they all look the same) Cistella geelmuydenii, new for me and 2nd in the county. A stroll around Minchinhampton Common for any leftover waxcaps didn't show anything unusual, however a small basidiocarp growing close to an Oak tree made me thing again that it was different from all the other LBJ's you would see in grasslands. With unusual cheilocystidia and capitate tips and caulocystidia it became Pholiotina brunnea - new for Gloucs. Lastly, after dropping my wife off for her hair cut/dye which takes almost 2hrs (mine takes 2 mins! - see the photo!) I use this time to whip around local small habitats I haven't visited before. At Box woods, very close to the Art Workshop I attend each week, I came across a few species growing on an rotting Corylus branch. One of which was a resupinate which I studied later at home. It wasn't until I looked closer than I found at around 0.3mm apothecia growing through Hyphodontia alutaria, a common resp. with hydnoid surface (upright spines of cystidia). Under microscopy this turned into Dactylospora stygia var. striata. This is now been renamed as Sclerococcum stygium only! No variant for the UK. Well here it is folks! The spores have finely striated spores with a thick septa, easily seen at 1000x, and also retain this feature inside the ascus. Acknowledged by Hans-Otto Baral ... one of the top mycologists in this class of fungi in Europe. So new for UK? One day maybe. :-)

Cortinarius ominosus

Hebeloma ebuneum

Ceraceomyces crispatus

Narcissea patouillardii

Cristinia helvetica

Vesiculomyces citrinus

Pholiotina brunnea

Cistella geelmuydenii

Sclerococcum stygium var. striata

Wednesday, 6 November 2024

OCTOBER 2024 : Uncommon to rare species recorded this month!

Well October should be a good month, and it was, although not until the middle of the month, when the fungi decided to show its head at last after a miserable early Autumn. This month I recorded no less than 16 species of Cortinarius, some very uncommon plus a whole lot of other interesting species. This doesn't include the first days of my trip with the BMS at the end of October in the Forest of Dean. My first foray into this forest, which surprised even me! Three key sites produced wonderful fungi at Highnam Woods, Cirencester Park and Sole Common Ponds (in Berkshire with Richard Huggins). I also had a few species sequenced thanks to the work of David Harries team at Aberystwyth University. One of which, an Inocybe is only the third record in the UK, and to have this confirmed by DNA is terrific. One very interesting find was what appeared to be Clavaria falcata whilst at Highnam Woods, thanks to Laura Dutton who spotted what I thought was Candlesnuff! This is a species that has been withdrawn of late owing to lack of material evidence and is just a common Clavaria. According to Petersen/Laessoe this is a species that warrants sps status. I kept the material but no interest from those that could have used this as a new investigation and to have sequenced which was also not possible due to lack of a holotype for matching. One day! I will just list the Cortinarius species recorded, picking out the really special finds, and there were many. I find it odd that so many recordists tend to shy away from identifying this genus for fear of a missed ID, I am the opposite, I love 'em! 😍And what's wrong with suggesting what you think they are, most of the time they are probably correct, occ. not no doubt, but you can suggest this also. Cortinarius acutus (Sole), alboviolaceus (Highnam), anthracinus (Sole) .. 1st Berks, decipientoides (Highnam) and 1st Gloucs/10 others in UK, delibutus (Sole), duracinus (Nailsworth Woods), epsomiensis (Minchinhampton Common, falsosus - likely as 1st UK!, flexipes (sole ... what a beauty!), lacustris (Highnam and Sole) .. 1st Berks, obtusus, pseudofallax (Sole) .. 2nd UK!.. ah well I give up, torvus (Sole), vernus (Sole) 1st Berks, and sanguineus (Soudley Ponds, FofDean) and lastly phew.. Cortinarius malicorius also at Soudley Ponds. Back to Cirencester Park, I found a very small Galerina lookalike and after careful study turned into Conocybe aurea, 1st Gloucs and just 8 other UK records. The cheilocystidia is exact here and why I trust what my microscope sees and what my brain cells interpret. Also here was Galerina sideroides, uncommon for sure, as well as the delightful Geastrum fimbriatum, which I added here just as its so gorgeous. During a Foray I was leading on UK Fungus Day at Crickley Hill, (a GloucsWT/NTrust site) homework produced Hebeloma aestivale as well as a difficult Inocybe. A single example, which I was pleased to be able to be sequenced again by David Harries and turned out to be very rare indeed Inocybe mycenoides! I thought it was something else even less rare! Just two other records in the UK. At Sole I found a baisc looking Hebeloma, but the cheilocystidia wasn't and proved to be H. geminatum, just 2 other UK records to date. Added Helvella lacunosa because it needs showing off, plus back at Sole the last species gathered on this extraordinary day was Inocybe margaritispora. Two more uncommon in Gloucs Inocybe muricellata and Inocybe ochroalba were both at Cirencester Park. At Sole a wonderful couple of specimens of a bolete that is the only one of its genus in Lanmaoa fragrans was located with Betula. Beautiful. Thanks to Richard Huggins and who showed me around this site. New for Berks and 13 other UK records only. Back at Cir. Park whilst eyes down on an Inocybe, I spotted a red looking Peziza sps which I would otherwise have missed for sure. This turned into P. saccardoana, 2nd Gloucs. but only 13 other UK records. Phlebiella fibrillosa and Ramariopes crocea were new for Gloucs, with finally a wonderful looking discomycete on a Pinus cone was surely Psilocistella conincola, but can't be proven as no sequence to match exists. Well, I had (still have) several! What a month. So for the two other people who actually read my blog, they know that I just love celebrating finding fungi, not bragging about how rare things are or not, but reporting these species needs to be known, and I love reporting on what I find. The luck is in the finding, the hard work is under the scope, and that's where the evidence calls the tune.. even for Cortinarius. Believe me, I take my time.