• ABOUT
  • BIRDING 2018
  • Birding 2019
  • BLOG POSTS
  • Butterflies 2018
  • Resources

earthstar

~ a celebration of nature

earthstar

Tag Archives: waxcaps

A kaleidoscope of colourful fungi

04 Friday Nov 2022

Posted by sconzani in autumn, fungi

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

autumn colour, British fungi, British waxcaps, Russula, russula fungi, waxcap fungi, waxcaps

For Fungi Friday, here’s a selection of the colourful waxcap and russula fungi I’ve discovered during recent local meanders. Enjoy!

Like this:

Like Loading...

Cemetery fungi

12 Friday Nov 2021

Posted by sconzani in autumn, fungi

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

boletes, British fungi, cemetery fungi, Cortinarius, earthtongues, entoloma fungi, fungi at the cemetery, waxcaps

In recent weeks I’ve paid several visits to Cardiff’s Cathays Cemetery so today I thought I’d share a selection of some of the glorious fungi I’ve seen, including various species of bolete, entoloma and cortinarius, as well as waxcaps and earthtongues.

Like this:

Like Loading...

Persistent waxcaps

27 Friday Aug 2021

Posted by sconzani in fungi

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

British fungi, British waxcaps, Hygrocybe acutoconica, Persistent waxcap, waxcap fungi, waxcaps

I used to love finding waxcaps in the grounds of my local cemetery when I lived in Cardiff but hardly see any in my current area. So, it was a delight to spot these Persistent waxcaps (Hygrocybe acutoconica) in one of the paddocks at Cosmeston earlier this week.

210827 persistent waxcap (1)

Their caps range in shade from yellow to orange and, though initially moist like most waxcaps, they soon dry out and often crack as they expand, especially when growing in an exposed location. The caps start off conical (hence the epithet acutoconica), which means these fungi can sometimes be confused with other species like the Blackening waxcap (Hygrocybe conica), but these Persistent caps don’t blacken.

210827 persistent waxcap (2)

The gills and stem of this fungus also range in colour from yellow to orange, and the stem sometimes looks grooved and fibrous.

210827 persistent waxcap (3)

Persistent waxcaps are most often found in unfertilised grasslands, particularly on calcareous soils, and can also pop up on sandy soils and even amongst sand dunes.

Like this:

Like Loading...

287/365 Hygrocybe, but which

14 Monday Oct 2019

Posted by sconzani in autumn, fungi, nature

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

autumn colour, autumn fungi, British fungi, fungus, Hygrocybe, waxcap fungi, waxcaps

191014 hygrocybe (1)

Waxcaps are my favourite fungi but they can be difficult to identify. Sometimes the colour helps, but there are several species of a reddish-orange hue. As these have quite a coarse upper surface on the caps, I thought at first that they might be Fibrous waxcaps (Hygrocybe intermedia) but, as these were at Cosmeston Lakes Country Park, I’m wondering if they might be Hygrocybe calciphilia, which are smaller and grow on calcareous grassland. I really need to check their features more thoroughly in future. What I do know for sure is how lovely they are!

191014 hygrocybe (3)
191014 hygrocybe (4)

191014 hygrocybe (2)

Like this:

Like Loading...

278/365 Happy National Fungi Day!

05 Saturday Oct 2019

Posted by sconzani in autumn, fungi, nature

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

#NationalFungiDay, bracket fungi, British fungi, Candlesnuff, fungus, National Fungi Day, oysterling fungi, Stump puffballs, Sulphur tuft, waxcaps

As today was National Fungi Day in Britain and we’ve had good quantities of the rain needed to stimulate fungal growth, I caught the train in to Cardiff today for a fungi foray around Heath Park and the new part of Cathays Cemetery. Here are some of the fungi I found …

191005 fungi (11)
191005 fungi (22)
191005 fungi (3)
191005 fungi (13)
191005 fungi (17)
191005 fungi (21)
191005 fungi (1)
191005 fungi (7)
191005 fungi (18)
191005 fungi (10)
191005 fungi (8)
191005 fungi (5)
191005 fungi (19)
191005 fungi (2)
191005 fungi (14)
191005 fungi (16)
191005 fungi (15)
191005 fungi (4)
191005 fungi (20)
191005 fungi (6)
191005 fungi (9)
191005 fungi (12)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Wild Christmas, day 3

27 Thursday Dec 2018

Posted by sconzani in fungi, nature, walks, winter

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

bracket fungus, Cathays Cemetery, Clitocybe fungi, club fungus, coral fungus, earthstar, fungi foray, fungus, inkcap, mushroom, Redlead roundhead, waxcaps

I’m currently taking part in the local Wildlife Trusts’ #7DaysofWildChristmas challenge. This ‘is a week-long challenge to do one wild thing a day from the 25th to the 31st of December’. For me a challenge like this is easy peasy ’cause I try to live my whole life as one long wild challenge but I like to support these initiatives to help to inspire other people to put more Nature and wildness in their lives. Believe me, in a world as crazy as ours currently is, you will feel better for it.

For today’s challenge I spent about four hours at Cardiff’s Cathays Cemetery, hunting for fungi to photograph (not forage) in both the old and new sections of the cemetery. I figured that, after all the rain we’ve had recently, I should be able to find one or two nice things. I wasn’t disappointed.

181227 fungi foray (1)
181227 fungi foray (2)
181227 fungi foray (3)
181227 fungi foray (4)
181227 fungi foray (5)
181227 fungi foray (6)
181227 fungi foray (7)
181227 fungi foray (8)
181227 fungi foray (9)
181227 fungi foray (10)
181227 fungi foray (11)
181227 fungi foray (12)
181227 fungi foray (13)
181227 fungi foray (14)
181227 fungi foray (15)
181227 fungi foray (16)
181227 fungi foray (17)

Like this:

Like Loading...

It’s waxcap time!

10 Friday Nov 2017

Posted by sconzani in autumn, fungi, nature

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Cathays Cemetery, fungi, fungus, grassland fungi, unimproved grassland, waxcaps

Look what I found hiding in the grass at Cathays Cemetery during a recent walk around: gorgeous fungal gems!

171110 Waxcaps (2)171110 Waxcaps (1)

Like this:

Like Loading...

The Witches’ Hats

16 Sunday Oct 2016

Posted by sconzani in autumn, fungi, nature

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

Blakcening waxcap, Cathays Cemetery, Hygrocybe, Hygrocybe conica, waxcap fungi, waxcaps, Witch's Hat, Witches' Hats

I make no apology for the fact that you will be seeing increasing numbers of fungi on this blog in the coming months. For me, they provide the cheery colours and intriguing shapes in the landscape after the glory of the wildflowers has faded and, even if you don’t particularly like fungi, there will be pretty pictures to peruse.

161016-blackening-waxcap-1

The Blackening waxcaps (scientific name Hygrocybe conica) have been some of the first to appear in my local waxcap hotspot, Cathays Cemetery. The fact that its 110-acre grounds have remained largely undisturbed since the cemetery closed to new burials about 35 years ago means its grassy spaces are ideal for waxcaps, as the hygrocybe species are sensitive both to pollution and to agricultural chemicals.

161016-blackening-waxcap-2
161016-blackening-waxcap-3

Blackening waxcaps start life in a variety of colours, from yellow and orange through to red – sometimes all those shades in just one little mushroom – then, as they age, they blacken, eventually turning jet black. As you might guess from the ‘conica’ in their scientific name, they have a conical shape, so I think you can see why they are often called the Witch’s Hat waxcap. Meetings of their covens are happening all over Europe right now!

161016-blackening-waxcap-4
161016-blackening-waxcap-5

Like this:

Like Loading...

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.

View Full Profile →

Follow earthstar on WordPress.com

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Recent blog posts

  • Down the hatch January 30, 2023
  • First Primroses January 29, 2023
  • Encounters with grebes January 28, 2023
  • Fern Friday: Hart’s-tongue January 27, 2023
  • Feasting Chiffchaff January 26, 2023

From the archives

Follow me on Twitter

My Tweets

COPYRIGHT

Unless otherwise acknowledged, the text and photographs on this blog are my own and are subject to international copyright. Nothing may be downloaded or copied without my permission.

Fellow Earth Stars!

Blog at WordPress.com.

  • Follow Following
    • earthstar
    • Join 578 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • earthstar
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

You must be logged in to post a comment.

    %d bloggers like this: