Foray in Drumboe

Based on sightings and numbers of fungi seen recently, I suspected we were having an early and productive year for them, so I went to Drumboe to see what was going on. Drumboe is usually pretty good for more common fungi, but I was astonished at the numbers and wide range of fungi that I found close together, sometimes finding half a dozen different species under a single tree: every step brought new specimens into view.

First sighting was the Porcelain Mushroom - Oudemansiella mucida:

Porcelain mushroom - Oudemensiella mucida

It grows on the upper ends of dead Beech wood, so it's always easy to get an underside shot, which shows the beautiful and delicate cap:

Oudemansiella mucida underside

The next tree was a very live Beech, and the floor below it was covered with mushrooms of every colour: an amazing sight. The first to catch my eye was a batch of Chanterelles:

Chanterelles

These have a wonderful scent reminiscent of apricots. Wonderful flavour, too.....

There were various Russulas and Lactarius, mostly in some degree of wear and tear. I used Geoff Kibby's excellent new key to Russulas to identify this specimen as Russula aurora:

Russula aurora

The key features of this Russula are: the blood-red cap, fading to cream in the centre, cuticle peeling to 50%, mild taste, mild smell, white spores.

New to my species list.

The Lactarius family can be recognised by the production of 'milk' from the gills when damaged. This 'milk' can be very useful when identifying Lactarius species, as it can taste hot, bitter or mild, and the taste can be instantly obvious, or develop slowly over time:

Lactarius 'milk'

This specimen turned out to be Lactarius brittanicus, which has a strong association with Beech.

I also found Lactarius piperatus, which has very hot milk.

The same tree was host to the bolete Xerocomus chrysenteron - the Red Cracking Bolete:

Xerocomus chrysenteron - Red Cracking Bolete

(Although I'm pretty sure that one was renamed a few years ago). 

There were also plenty of specimens of the Beechwood Sickener - Russula mairei:

Beechwood Sickener

The Blusher - Amanita rubescens - is a fairly frequent find under broadleaf trees:

The Blusher - Amanita rubescens

Mycena pura can vary dramatically in size. Some specimens are small and very dainty, measuring 15-20 mm across the cap, but others - like the following specimen - can be large enough to be confused with Wood Blewits:

Mycena pura

Fortunately, the smell is instantly recognisable: it can be described as being like radishes or raw potatoes: raphanoid.

Earthballs can be separated from Puffballs by the absence of a stem:

Earthball Scleroderma citrinum

I also find earthballs are heavier for their size.

I spotted this Ascomycete, and realised that I hadn't seen it before:

Tarzetta cupularis

Tarzetta cupularis is identified by the teeth around the rim and the downy exterior, and is associated with mosses. There are a handful of Irish records.

New to my species list.

Helvella macropus is another scarce fungus, which I have previously seen on only one occasion:

Helvella macropus

It is essentially a grey cup fungus on a long, thin, felty stipe. Again, a handful of Irish records.

Another fungus which I rarely see: 

Earth Star - Thelophora spiculosa

Thelophora spiculosa is a ground-hugging fungus that can be very easily overlooked. It grows in moist soil, as do the liverworts underneath it.

No trip to Drumboe is complete without finding one of my favourites - Marasmius hudsonii:

Marasmius hudsonii

Marasmius hudsonii is specific to Holly leaves, and that shot shows a spike on a Holly leaf to the right for size. The spines which cover the minute cap can clearly be seen in silhouette. 

I feel a trip to Ards coming on for Sunday.

Horse Hair fungus

This is a good time of year to find one of my favourite mushrooms: Marasmius hudsonii, which is found solely on Holly. Hunt around beneath a Holly bush, and have a close look at any soft, black and wet fallen leaves. Pink or white dots are the first indication that you've found one of the most interesting mushrooms we have:

Marasmius hudsonii on Holly

This mushroom is tiny: the cap is between 2 and 3 mm in diameter, and the stipe ('stem') is as fine as horse-hair, hence its common name: Horse-hair mushroom. But look even more closely, and you will see that the cap is covered with tiny, purple bristles.

Underneath, the cap has a few, relatively thick, gills:

Underside of Marasmius hudsonii, showing thick gills

I find this mushroom under almost every specimen of Holly I choose to examine, but there has to be a mat of the soft wet leaves for it to be found: too dry and they won't be there.

There's a similar (but unspiked) member of the same mushroom family that's found on wet Ivy leaves: Marasmius epiphylloides.

Drumboe fungi

At the Drumboe car park, I noticed some Honey Fungus - Armillaria mellea - on an old stump:


A close inspection revealed a very small (4mm) Ichneumonid exploring the older specimens:


This is no surprise, since most fungi are eaten by fly larvae, and a quick inspection revealed the target:

This parasitisation of fly larvae in mushrooms reveals a stunning synchronisation of the 3 species: the fly larvae are only present for a short time each year - during the fungal season - and each mushroom specimen will only last for a small number of days. Meanwhile, the fly larvae must grow from egg to pupation very quickly (showing that fungi must be an excellent food source), so the Ichneumonid has only a very short window of opportunity to find a suitable larva and lay her eggs.

Honey Fungus is known to be an aggressive decomposer of dead wood, and its presence is often revealed by the presence of black 'bootlaces' on old stumps:


One of my favourite fungi is the minute Marasmius hudsonii, which only grows on old, black, Holly leaves:

Despite the fact that the whole fungus is only perhaps 20mm tall, microscopic examination of the tiny cap shows that it is covered in spikes:

I cannot fathom any reason for a minute fungal cap to be ornamented in this way. (Notice that the stipe also has spines).


A single specimen of Wood Blewitt - Lepista nuda - shone purple through the orange Beech leaves:
Edible, but I don't like the over-perfumed taste.

September Sun

At last, after 4 months of rain, we have had some sunshine.

That should bring the fungi out: this is Coprinus comatus, or Lawyers Wig. Edible and good (and they were).

And now one of the tiniest of fungi: Marasmius hudsonii. These grow only on dead Holly leaves:


The close-up shows the thick gills and hairs on the cap, which is about 2mm. across:


The Willow Leaf Beetle - Lochmaea caprea is about 7mm long:


Moths are still coming to light in small numbers. This appears to be November Moth - Epirrita dilutata, but I'd better put an agg. on that to be on the safe side.


This is also a new species to me: Frosted Orange - Gortyna flavago.