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Tag Archives: #FungiFriday

Bands of colour

19 Friday Feb 2021

Posted by sconzani in fungi

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

#FungiFriday, bracket fungi, British fungi, Trametes versicolor, Turkey tail

I can never go past Turkey tail fungi (Trametes versicolor) without checking out their wonderful rings of colour.

210219 turkey tail (1)

These are neither as vibrant nor as varied as some I’ve seen but there is a hint of blue in one of those outer bands that doesn’t really show up well in my photos, as the light was very dull this day. I figured they were still worth sharing for Fungi Friday.

210219 turkey tail (2)

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10/366 In my cups

10 Friday Jan 2020

Posted by sconzani in fungi, nature, winter

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

#FungiFriday, British fungi, Elfcups, Scarlet elfcup

It seems appropriate that I should be ‘in my cups’ on a Friday night, the traditional night at the end of the working week for downing an alcoholic beverage or three. But, in my case, I neither work nor drink, and my ‘cups’ are fungi, Scarlet elfcups to be precise. As these are one of my favourite species of fungi I’ve blogged about them several times before and explained, in a blog back in 2017, how I know these are Scarlet, not the less common Ruby elfcups. They are always a joy to find, and they recur at this particular site every year.

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(Though, as you’ll see in that previous blog, I was excited to learn how to identify fungi using microscopy, I didn’t continue with it. SEWBReC moved to an out-of-town location so it would now be a two-bus ninety-minute journey to their office, and I didn’t want the expense of buying my own microscope.)

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Fungi Friday: Turkey tails

21 Friday Dec 2018

Posted by sconzani in fungi, nature

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

#FungiFriday, British fungi, fungi, fungus, Trametes versicolor, Turkey tail, Turkeytail

I’ve been collecting these images of Turkey tail fungi (Trametes versicolor) for the past couple of months, thinking they would be appropriate for the last Fungi Friday before Christmas seeing as how a lot of people eat turkey for their Christmas dinner.
So, merry feasting … but not on these!

181221 turkey tails (1)

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181221 turkey tails (5)
181221 turkey tails (6)
181221 turkey tails (7)

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Fungi Friday: variety

14 Friday Dec 2018

Posted by sconzani in fungi, nature

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Tags

#FungiFriday, black-and-white fungi, British fungi, diversity of fungi, fungal diversity, fungus, Heath Park, shapes of fungi, textures of fungi

I took myself off for a fungi foray around the woodland at Cardiff’s Heath Park today as it’s usually a good place to find a wide variety of fungi. And, rather than post colour photos of my finds, I thought I’d convert them all to black and white as that shows, I think, the fungal world’s amazing diversity of shapes and textures.

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181214 fungi diversity (1)
181214 fungi diversity (2)

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Crepidotus calolepis

23 Friday Nov 2018

Posted by sconzani in autumn, fungi, nature

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Tags

#FungiFriday, British fungi, Crepidotus calolepis, Oysterling, oysterling fungi

Happy #FungiFriday! I actually found these little oysterling fungi a few weeks ago but forgot to share them at the time.

181123 Crepidotus calolepis (1)

Crepidotus calolepis is a bit of a mouthful but these little beauties don’t have a common name. Here’s what fungi expert Pat O’Reilly says about its scientific name:

The generic name Crepidotus comes from crepid- meaning a base such as a shoe or a slipper (although some sources state that it means ‘cracked’), and otus, meaning an ear – hence it suggests a ‘slipper-like ear’. In the past mushrooms in this genus were sometimes referred to as slipper mushrooms. The specific epithet calolepis may come from the roots calo- meaning beautiful and lepis, meaning with scales.

181123 Crepidotus calolepis (2)

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O’Reilly is doubtful about the presence of Crepidotus calolepis in Britain, suggesting that the British records are, in fact, scaly forms of Crepidotus mollis, the Peeling oysterling, but my find was confirmed from photos by two other British experts so C. calolepis it is!

181123 Crepidotus calolepis (5)

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A new Earthstar

16 Friday Nov 2018

Posted by sconzani in fungi, nature

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

#FungiFriday, British fungi, collared earthstar, earthstar, earthstar fungus, Geastrum triplex

You can’t have a blog called Earthstar without occasionally having a post about an Earthstar, so here it is.

181116 earthstar (3)

Though I searched for these amazing little fungi at a known location in Cathays Cemetery a couple of weeks ago, I couldn’t find any. So, I was delighted when a birding acquaintance showed me this solitary Earthstar at a completely new location earlier this week.

181116 earthstar (2)

This is Geastrum triplex, a Collared earthstar. I’ve previously only found them under conifers but the experts say they are most often found, like this one, under hardwood trees.

181116 earthstar (1)

I gave its sac a poke to show my friend how the spores are released – let’s hope that also helped to spread the spores so we see more of these little stunners in future.

181116 earthstar (4)

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Image

The cheek of it

12 Friday Oct 2018

Tags

#FungiFriday, fungi, fungus, unidentified fungus

181012 fungi friday

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Posted by sconzani | Filed under autumn, fungi, nature

≈ 4 Comments

Rosy russulas

21 Friday Sep 2018

Posted by sconzani in autumn, fungi, nature

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

#FungiFriday, British fungi, fungus, Red russula, Russula

It’s Fungi Friday and today I have for your pleasure and delight one of the Russula species of fungi. According to the First Nature website of fungi expert Pat O’Reilly, around 160 species of Russula can be found in Britain, and I know from venturing out on past forays with the Glamorgan Fungus Group that the reddish-coloured ones can be especially difficult to identify so I’m not even going to try to put a name to these particular fungi. I just think they’re rather lovely and I hope they brighten your day as much as they did mine.

180921 Russula fungi (5)180921 Russula fungi (6)

180921 Russula fungi (3)
180921 Russula fungi (4)

180921 Russula fungi (1)180921 Russula fungi (2)

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It’s Fungi Friday!

17 Friday Nov 2017

Posted by sconzani in autumn, fungi, nature

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

#FungiFriday, Apricot Club, Candlesnuff fungi, Cathays Cemetery, Clouded funnel, club fungi, Cortinarius, fungi, fungus, Heath Park, Stump puffballs, Trooping funnel

I needed a fungi fix so went for a wander around a couple of my old haunts, Heath Park and Cathays Cemetery, both in Cardiff. Here’s what I found …

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171117 fungi (1)

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Fungi Friday: Velvet shanks

06 Friday Jan 2017

Posted by sconzani in fungi, nature

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

#FungiFriday, Enoki mushroom, Enokitake, Flammulina velutipes, fungus, Velvet shank

Starting as I mean to continue, I braved the chill wind and annoying drizzle on New Year’s Day for a walk around one of my local parks and was rewarded with the sight of these lovely fungi Flammulina velutipes, otherwise known as Velvet shanks (due to their velvety lower stems).

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They’re wood rotters, and it might surprise you to know that these are exactly the same fungi as the white Enoki (or Enokitake), much favoured by the Japanese and occasionally available in supermarkets in Britain and other countries. As they’re commercially grown in a dark environment Enoki are longer, smaller and very pale but the natural colour of the Velvet shank is the vibrant golden orange shown in my photos (flammulina means little flame).

170106-flammulina-velutipes-velvet-shank2

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About me

sconzani

sconzani

I'm a writer and photographer; researcher and blogger; birder and nature lover; countryside rambler and city strider; volunteer and biodiversity recorder.

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