As I Mentioned in the Spring Edition, the Aim Is to Produce Our News
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Herefordshire Fungus Survey Group o News Sheet N 32: 2016 ~ 500 μm Belonidium mollissimum - The Flits Nature Reserve (13/7/16) Contents Recorder’s Report, January - August 2016 Page 3 Recorder’s Report, September - December 2016 Page 6 Death by Fungi - Stealthy, Insidious Poisoners Page 12 A Quick Guide to the Species Polyporus - and a County First Page 14 Looking, Finding and Spreading the Word (Updating the Welsh Rust Fungus RDL) Page 17 The contents of this newsletter are the copyright property of the Herefordshire Fungus Survey Group. Please do not reproduce material from this publication without prior permission from the Editor. Thank you guide to some of the key features of the ones we President: Ted Blackwell frequently find in VC 36 - as well as a 'County first' turned Recorder: Jo Weightman up by botanist, Dr. Judith Oakley. Chairman: Roger Evans Finally, no News Sheet issue would ever be complete without one of Debbie Evans' lovely articles on Rusts. Secretary: Mike Stroud Following the publication of the Rust Red Data List for Treasurer: Charles Hunter Wales in 2015 (see HFSG News Sheet No. 29, p. 2), she points out that several of the rusts listed have now been Technical Officer: Steve Rolph found at new sites in Wales: it is often more a question of under-recording, rather than of true rarity. Many of the Welsh RDL rusts may also occur in VC 36 and she urges A rather belated welcome to News Sheet, Issue 32! us to keep 'Looking, Finding and Spreading the Word' (pp. 17-20) . Firstly, my apologies to everyone for the very long delay in producing this issue - some of which, I am afraid, may This will almost certainly be the last issue of our News be rather out of date by now. However, such is the Sheet in the form that we have been used to since Spring quality of all our contributors, that I am sure that you will 2002 - ie two issues per year, with not only the half-yearly find plenty to interest you, even so. It contains the two Recorder's Reports, but also containing your articles, Recorder's Reports for 2016 and most of the material photographs, etc. as well. My thanks are to all who have that was sent to me for inclusion at the time. contributed to it over the years. in his article on 'Death by Fungi - The Insidious poisoners' We have not yet fully decided the future structure and (pp. 12-13) , Ted Blackwell takes a look at the darker side format, but it will probably need to be simpler. If you of some species of the fungal kingdom and their influence have any suggestions, please do let me know. on human society over the ages. However, I do hope that you enjoy reading this issue. Throughout our News Sheets over the years, Jo Weightman has drawn attention to particular genera and Mike Stroud how to distinguish between some of the more commonly [email protected] found species within them. On pp.14-17 she has turned her attention to the genus Polyporus with a very helpful Thanks to Cherry for this photograph of a blackbird's nest that she found on a bracket (Ganoderma sp.?), Talk about opportunism! Page 2 HALF YEAR REPORT - 1ST JANUARY - 31ST AUGUST 2016 Jo Weightman - County Recorder FORAYS spring look-alike of P. candolleana. A Coprinus domesticus was very desiccated, but recognisable Hollybush Roughs 30. 03. 2016 under the microscope. Panaeolus acuminatus New site records 16 Forayers 13 was quite frequent in the lawns and Clitocybe fragrans, which is more commonly found in the The first foray of the year took us to a dry, steep autumn, was also present. slope in the Malverns, first across grassland where, understandably, nothing was showing and then into After the foray we gathered in warm sunshine to talk broad-leaved woodland with oak and ash, locally about our finds and enjoy a welcome drink on the dominated by sycamore. There was much terrace, before being regaled with a delicious soup bramble – fortunately as it turned out: see below. and cheese lunch by our hosts Susan and Charles Most finds were on fallen or dead wood. Hunter. We thank them most warmly for their hospitality. Finds included: Hapalopilus nidulans a fine well developed bracket of this rather soft gingerbread-like species high up on a dead attached branch of rowan. Bisporella sulfurina is similar to B. citrina but somewhat smaller and a sharper yellow. It grows over pyrenomycetes. Chaetosphaerella fusca - but for its smaller spores, this species could be mistaken for the better known and more common C. phaeostroma, both looking like mini shiny black eggs in a nest of jet black hairs. This was a new County record and is rarely recorded nationally. Det. E. Blackwell. A large piece of fallen hawthorn was host to three species. A patch of yellow was provided by the disc fungus Episphaeria fraxinicola (2nd County ~ 500 μm record and rarely recorded nationally), which was growing parasitically over what appeared to be Melanopsamma pomiformis (1st County record). Tapesina griseovitellina - Hollybush Roughs (30/3/2016) A few contaminating conidia of the Entomosporium state of the hawthorn leaf spot fungus, Diplocarpon mespili were also present. These conidia remarkably resemble water boatmen. 1st County record and also rarely recorded nationally. All det. E. Blackwell. The highlight of the day was a collection of Tapesina griseovitellina, a species confined to bramble and a first County record. The FRDBI lists only eight records. This species has a bright yellow disc surrounded by grey hairs which, under the microscope, can be seen to be coiled like a ~ 10 μm corkscrew. Coll./det. Shelly Stroud. Walbrook Wood 25. 05. 2016 Upper Grange Bacton 20. 04. 2016 A new site Forayers 9 New site records 2 Forayers 11 This new-to-the-Group site mainly comprises broad- We forayed in the garden, sheep pasture and a leaved woodland. Conditions were dry on the day wooded dingle with a range of broad-leaved trees, but, in spite of this, 24 base-line species, covering but conditions were dry overall. Although early ascos, agarics, brackets, a jelly fungus, some rusts season rusts and smuts were in evidence, no spring and some myxos, were recorded. Visits made specials, such as St George`s mushroom or morels later in the year are likely to be rewarding. were found. The most interesting fungus recorded was Mollisia The larger fungi were mostly bleached out, but elegantior, (previously known as Haglundia there was a one Psathyrella spadiceogrisea in good elegantior). This is only the 6th County record for a condition - this is a species of woody debris and a species with few national records and very probably Page 3 under-recorded. It looks like any other Mollisia ie a dark bluish-grey disc and frosted margin, Damp ash petioles hosted swarms of swarming on damp rotting wood. A distinguishing Hymenoscyphus albidus – this is the very common character is the long cylindrical septate hairs, species which can mutate/evolve into the form (coll/det S.Stroud). currently posing such a threat to our ash trees. Short, however, of DNA analysis, it is impossible to tell if our collection was ‘good’ or ‘bad’. Dead nettle stems produced six species, of which four were new to the site. A fallen alder was host to a spiny resupinate Steccherinum ochraceum. Dog Stinkhorn, Mutinus caninus eggs were found - these are much smaller than ordinary stinkhorn eggs and oval rather than round. Belonidium mollissimum, a common asco previously known as Dasyscyphus mollissimus, has a pale whitish/grey disc prettily edged with yellow ~ 1 mm hairs (see photo on front cover). Mollisia elegantior - Wallbrook Wood (25/5/2016) Some very young Gloeophyllum sepiarium was Brampton Bryan 15. 06. 2016 growing on the gate at the entrance to the site. New site records 16 Forayers 9 + our This species can form hand-sized brackets with red- President Ted Blackwell at lunchtime brown concentric ridges and zones. The underside – the spore-bearing hymenium – consists The number of new site records may be some of gill-like plates. reward for the drenching received by all present and demonstrates a triumph of motivation over For a wet site conditions were, on the whole, adversity. remarkably dry - although one forayer`s trousers were proof to the contrary! Not many agarics would be expected in mid-June, but species seen included Agrocybe pediades and Russula odorata. The latter is a fairly small, rather Brockhampton Estate 10. 08. 2016 fragile species with reddish –purple and olivaceous New site records 14 Forayers 12 cap colours, very deep yellow spores and a smell of Pelargonium. 2nd County record for an Most of us sought the wooded slope leading down uncommon species. to a stream (which proved to be dry). The trees were mostly hardwoods with much sycamore. Dead herbaceous stems were host to a number of Others tried the beech avenue. It proved to be new Asco records, all common species found another very dry foray, but looking hard brought its mainly in spring/early summer. results. Some finds at this well-forayed site were inevitably ‘repeats’, but our attention was caught by Ascobolus denudatus and Fimaria theioleuca, which the following species: occur on dung, are less commonly reported. Det. E. Blackwell. A battered pyrenomycete Calcarisporium arbuscula - a hyphomycete encrusting a piece of bark surprisingly yielded a producing tiny white sunbursts on a pyrenomycete good crop of spores of Nemania (formerly (see insert on picture below); Hypoxylon) serpens - a common species but not previously recorded at this site.