More fungi

I have the opportunity to attend a fungal foray on Saturday, so I thought I would check out my local area to see if there were many fungi around. Whilst I didn't find anything unusual, the sheer number of specimens was astonishing.  These two shots might give some impression of what I found:

Fungi on woodland floor

Fungi on woodland floor

Most of the specimens in this area were Russula mairei (Beechwood Sickener) or Lactarius blennius, although the second photo shows a cluster of Mycenas at the centre.

I also found a single specimen of the Honey Fungus, Armillaria mellea:

Honey Fungus - Armillaria mellea

And a few Deceivers - Laccaria laccata:

Deceiver - Laccaria laccata

The Deceiver gets its name from the fact that it changes colour and shape as it matures, and can often resemble other species. It smells very much like the yeast used for making bread.

Here is a mature specimen:

Mature Deceiver

Helvella crispa is just appearing through the grass. It is always contorted and irregular:

Helvella crispa

I find Mycenas quite tricky, probably because I don't (yet) have a key to them:

Mycena cf. amicta

A fungal foray on Saturday certainly seems worthwhile.

Sunniest day of the year

After early mist lifted, we had a clear blue sky and 22 degrees: we might get 2 days like this a year. So off up to the forestry to see what was going on.

Eristalis Hoverflies are still in evidence, and the males were holding station on the pathway:

Manual focus on those!

This little Braconid wasp was one of many looking over and under Willow leaves. They're probably still looking for the last of the sawfly larvae to parasitise:

Those of you who have been following my travels will know exactly how I feel about Slender St. John's Wort. The specific name 'pulchrum' shows what the people who named this in the 1700's thought of it, too:

This tiny (3 mm) Chrysomelid beetle was posed adjacent to next year's Willow leaf bud:

And finally - just to convince ourselves that we actually are in October - a solitary specimen of the Deceiver, Laccaria laccata:

After the deluge

We've had a long spell of atrocious weather, and when it hasn't been raining the light has been filthy. It has to be good for something....

A pair of Sulphur Tuft - Hypholoma fasciculare:


A fascinatingly-shaped Deceiver - Laccaria laccata:


The (always) bizarrely-shaped Helvella lacunosa:


And what I learned as Bolbitius vitellinus, although I know it has changed its name recently: