Tony Hardware's Fungi Finds

Monday, 2 August 2021

JULY 2021 - Uncommon and rare species

July had a period of very wet to very dry spells and so made it all the more interesting as to what could be found in and around this beautiful area of the Cotswolds I now live in. In a new location and NW Wilts at Ravenroost NR, near Swindon I found a single Amanita in soil close to the footpath, on the way back from where I had passed it earlier! Thanks to my policy of photographing anything interesting as you find it I was able to discern at home the tell-tale zigzag banding along the stem which pointed me towards A. simulans. Globose spores confirmed this. Thinking this was a more common species at the time I only took a section of gills home. Still good that this single rare species, according to the finds at 11th in UK and 1st for Wilts, can still spread its spores around the area. At a delightful walk through Dovey Woodland near Sapperton, I found a Flammulaster sps, always a teaser. Not looking like the expected macro features the microscopy directed me to F. muricatus due to the spherical cells in the cap. only 2nd in county. Other good finds inc: Incrucipulum ciliare found on oak leaf, Leptosporomyces mutabilis on Larix at Cherington Woods, Mucor mucedo - a pin mould found infecting Gymnopus fusipes badly, a lovely growth of the amazing amber dripping bracket Pseudoinonotus dryadens on Oak, a couple of unusual Scutelinia asco's in S. crinita and S. subhirtella, the latter by the Frome River walk just down from my home. Postia sericeomollis was unusual, found growing on fallen conifer at Ravenswood NR, proven by spore shape and depth of tubes, also at Ravenroost and found by fungi friend Richard Huggins, where researched at home thoroughly turned up Russula pseudintegra. First Russula of the year for me. Lastly, found in a most unusual location on Rodborough Common was a large wonderful bolete growing on a Rock-rose mound in full very hot sunlight that would have dwindled me to a dry up wreck after just 30 mins. This was Suillellus luridus, also found at the edge of woodland, scrub etc. So a very good July. To cap it all I had my first article published in a mycology publication 'Field Mycology', produced by the Brit. Myc. Soc. Entitled: "Mycena supina - a new species for Britain from Cornwall". Vol 22, Issue 3 July 2021 p104-106. I have found two/three other new species for the UK - all ascomycetes and a few new to science, but all not as great as finding a 'real' new mushroom!! I still love seeking out the little guys though.

Amanita simulans

Amanita simulans globose spores

Flammulaster muricatus spherical cap cells

Flammulaster muricatus

Flammulaster muricatus spores

Incrucipulum ciliare

Leptosporomyces mutabilis

Mucor mucedo infecting gills

Mucor mucedo

Postia sericeomollis

Pseudoinonotus dryadens

Pseudoinonotus dryadens spores

Russula pseudintegra spores 1000x

Russula pseudintegra

Scutelinia crinita

Scutelinia subhirtella

Scutelinia subhirtella ascospores

Suillellus luridus on Rock-rose mound

Suillellus luridus spores

Suillellus luridus chemical changes

Sunday, 4 July 2021

JUNE 2021 - Uncommon and rare species

June was a little dry but I stuck to dampish areas as much as I could as at least most ascomycetes had a chance of still surviving. First up was a basidiomycete in Crepidotus applanatus, not so common and found in an early state and so more easily recognisable. Many other ascos across the month included the unusual but spectacular looking Dinemasporium strigosum - hardly recognisable at the time with the naked eye but under the microscope it provides fireworks! Found on wood, which is very unusual, so my guess this one is a variant of sorts of this mostly unresearched genus. Only a few records of Episphaeria fraxinicola exists, and I have another one in Cornwall also! Must be as it is so small and indistinguishable and often missed. A Hyaloscypha species turned into the rarer variant H. fuckelii var alniseda after careful examination. The nominate was also found in June so added here for comparison. Hymenoscyphus menthae was a nice find besides a marshy area and therefore wet branch, which is where this thrives. A Myxomycete with only two mature examples still showed it to be a new find for me in Macbrideola cornea, with a 'burnt out oak tree' as a sure sign of this species representing the capillitum. Two exciting finds in the Mollisia genus were M. atlantica and M. benesuada. Any Mollisia needs careful examination and these two more than most. Key in the former were septate spores in and out of the ascus. Pyrenopeziza millegrana rounded off a good month. Lets hope Fungus Groups will get back together soon and we can actually talk with other fungifolks.

Crepidotus applanatus

Dinemasporium strigosum .... or?

Dinemasporium strigosum spores

Epishaeria fraxinicola

Hyaloscypha fuckelii var. alniseda

Hyaloscypha fuckelii var. fuckelii

Hymenoscypha menthae

Macbrideola cornea

Mollisia atlantica

Mollisia benesuala

Pyrenopeziza millegrana

Wednesday, 2 June 2021

MAY 2021 - Uncommon and rare species

May produced another fine collection of uncommon ascomycetes and a Cyphelloid and Basidiomycete. The Cyphelloid was found on old Herecleum stem, common name Bowl Hoodie, so must be quite a recent name looking like a white caped mysterious monk. Cistella grevillei is quite scarce in Gloucs. and was found on Urtica dioica. Cliopilus hobsonii was a nice find attached to a Sycamore twig on the ground looking everything like an ascomycete but seeing the basidia under the 'scope clearly identifies this as a basidiomycete. While taking time out at the now local Slimbridge Wildlife Trust on the Severn, I passed some dead Teasel. The first one I selected had tiny ascos growing at the base which I later found to be a very rare type of Didymella, this being D. caulicola. Not easy to ID as only one other gathered in UK and research text very thin on the ground, inc. 1882 document stating this substrate the only one for this species. Ascospore size was unusually large which also helped. A short trip to a new woodland for me at Hailey Wood, part of the Bathurst Estate which includes part of the amazing Macmillian Way, a footpath that seems to meander through the Cotswolds everywhere. Here I found Lachnellula calycina on Pinus - 1st for Gloucs and only nine other records in UK. Another new area which I felt needed exploring was The Leasowes woodland northeast of Sapperton. A beautiful woodland, with springs and streams, everything you need for fungi at this time of the year. Here I came across a Lachnum species which I thought might be the common L. virgineus but examination proved to be the rarer L. controversum, probably named this way as it is so close to many other species. Take a look at the paraphyses here and see the difference. Under a branch half-submerged and driftwood of probably Fagus or Ash, I found a lovely glassy yellow asco which turned into Phaeohelotium epiphyllum. So another good month in the field and The Cotswolds are providing wonderful locations as good as Cornwall used to be, if not better due the variety of tree and habitat access. Footpaths are everywhere here! In Cornwall you are given a curious eye just using a public footpath and looking slightly odd, (I can't help that - and I'm an amateur mycologist!) on your own with a mushroom in your ear.

Calyptella capula

Cistella grevillei

Clitopilus hobsonii spores

Clitopilus hobsonii

Didymella caulicola

Lachnellula calycina

Lachnum controversum

Phaeohelotium epiphyllum asci

Phaeohelotium epiphyllum