1 Shropshire Group Newsletter

SPRING 2013 NUMBER 12 Contents 1 Foray Reports 6 Beechwood Shuffle - Rob Rowe 7 A Brief History of the Fungus - Roy Mantle 10 Charlotte’s Gallery 11 Why Use a Microscope - Les Hughes 12 Reports from Microscope Day - Various 14 Images of the Beefsteak Fungus - Justin & Erin 15 Interesting Websites. 16 Pictures from Mike Middleton 17 Pictures from John Newnham 18 Fixture List for 2013 ForayReports

Foray to Severn Valley Country Park 21 April 2012 Shropshire was officially in drought. March had been very dry but a week of April showers had soaked the ground. Seven of us set out on a beautiful sunny morning hoping that the recent rains had been sufficient to bring forth hordes of fungi. As it turned out there were not exactly hordes but 23 species was a good tally. The first find was the edible St George’s Calocybe gambosa so called because it fruits around St George’s Day, the 23rd of April. As John remarked, “it was a couple of days early” but it was near enough for us. We moved down and over the miners’ bridge where we found a few small Scarlet Elf Cups Sarcoscypha austriaca in an area where the woodland had been clear felled and also in this area the Thimble Morel Verpa conica was found. This is an Sarcoscypha austriaca ©R. Mantle uncommon fungus but one that had been found here before down by the river under the hawthorn bushes. We followed the path up to the Country Park Halt on the Severn Valley Railway and then turned down to the river. Coming back towards the Visitor Centre the sharp eyes of John and Denise spotted a few specimens of the Vinegar Cup Helvella acetabulum (formerly Paxina acetabulum) hiding amongst the dead leaves at the side of the path. Vinegar consists of mainly acetic acid and the Romans called the vessel holding the vinegar Amanita crocea © Roy Mantle Verpa conica © R. Mantle 2

an acetabulum and this name was also given to vessels of a similar shape hence the name of this fungus. In the afternoon the rain came as we went across the meadows and down into Hallclose Coppice. Russell found a couple of nice Mosaic utriformis (formerly utriformis) in the far meadow and Kate found more Vinegar Cups Helvella acetabulum at the side of the path on the way back to the cars.

Helvella acetabulum © R. Mantle

Dudmaston Foray Sunday 6th May 2012 A small, but select group of us gathered at the usual place on the Dumaston Estate, six in all. We set off for the morning session into Comer Wood, finding fungi few in numbers, but overall interesting in variety. The highlight of the morning however, has to be given to the swans on the pond, carrying their young on their backs, in an attempt to provide the cutest wildlife photo of the year. A winner so far. The new idea of bringing specimens back and setting them out for discussion was a limited success, as there were few of us, and few fungi to look at. Nevertheless, it was worth doing, and we shall continue it, until Roy can no longer lift the trug. After lunch we visited three different ecosystems as we made our way around the lake to the dingle. The grassland around the lake offered a good few species, the best being Calocybe carnea, found by Judith, and Stropharia coronilla, found by Martin, and both (smugly) identified by Roy. The dingle proved to be something of a disappointment, in view of all the recent rain. As usual some species offered themselves repeatedly. Today it was Clitocybe fragrans which seemed to be everywhere. There © L. Hughes was a Panaeolus in quantity also, sadly never identified. The other notable find was Judith’s first ever St George’s, which seemed to disappear into a convenient paper bag. They seem to be having a good season. In Comer Wood we found the slime mould Lycogala terrestre (Wolfs Milk) on a rotting tree trunk also some young Xylaria possibly X. polymorpha. See picture The full list of species found and identified is set out on the website. As usual it was the brackets and resupinates which offered greatest resistance to identification. Nothing startling appeared, although some things did seem to be showing earlier than expected. Lycogala terrestre & Xylaria sp. © R. Mantle Granville Country Park 2nd September By this time some new members had joined and a fair number of us forayed amongst the birch scrub now colonising the old spoil heaps. We found a reasonable number (18) of species including the Birch specialists Leccinum scabrum the Brown Birch Bolete, L. versipelle the Orange Birch Bolete and Paxillus involutus the Brown Rollrim. Also found on a burnt Gorse bush was Daldinia fissa. This is a close relative of D. concentrica King Alfred’s Cakes/Cramp Balls which grows mainly on Ash. A nearby Birch tree had been scorched by the fire and also had D. fissa fruiting on it. The afternoon was spent foraying on the other side of the Daldinia fissa © R. Mantle 3

road amongst grassland and deciduous woodland. Pickings were sparse here but all was made good when we found a beautiful group of Geastrum triplex the Collared Earthstar. There were a number of fruitbodies in different stages. On a fencing rail was Gloeophyllum sepiarium the Conifer Mazegill; apparently the use of this type of fencing has caused an increase in the population of this attractively coloured species. On the way back to the cars we found the lovely coloured but bad smelling Tricholoma sulphureum the Sulphur Knight. This fungus smells of coal gas.

Haughmond Hill 22nd September More new members had joined and 15 of us set out from the main car park to foray in mixed woodland on the hill. Almost immediately we came across Pholiota gummosa the Sticky Scalycap. This is an occasional species which is usually found in debris at the sides of paths. Agaricus augustus The Prince was also found at the side of the path. This is a large and distinctive species which I am told is good to eat. It does look too good to eat though. There were also some impressive groups of Daedaleopsis confragosa the Blushing Bracket on dead Goat Willow. Not so rare but equally attractive in their own way. We were also treated to a sniff of aniseed from Clitocybe odora the Aniseed Funnel. We moved venue in the afternoon to foray in Abbey Woods about half a mile away. Here we found some wonderful specimens of Agaricus augustus © M. Middleton Amanita phalloides the Death Cap and close by were some perfect fruitbodies of Amanita citrina the False Deathcap. Also in this area were some lovely pink specimens of Mycena rosea the Rosy Bonnet. Deadaleopsis confragosa

© M. Middleton

Amanita phalloides© R. Mantle Mycena rosea © R. Mantle 4

Corbet Wood 6th October Corbet Wood is located at Grinshill, to the west of the A49 a few miles north of Shrewsbury. The area consists of an old sandstone quarry which has revegetated back to nature. There are some mature stands of Scots Pine, semi-mature Beech plantings, mixed with areas of Willow/Oak/Sycamore and Holly species forming secondary woodland. The weather on the day was sunny and fine. 4 members shared in an interesting foray. The morning session involved a short walk through mature pine trees, where we found Amanita citrina, smelling slightly of raw potatoes, and not far away was Scleroderma verrucosum, with its distinctive ribbed rooting base. We then dropped down the slope away from the footpath to scan the woodland floor. What an amazing sight! – We had stumbled across a very large flush of Geastrum triplex (Collared Earthstar) ranging from small unopened ‘eggs’ through to mature fully opened specimens about the size of tennis balls and all sizes in between. These were all associated with a single mature Holly tree. After standing in awe for a long while and taking photographs we ambled on a little farther, only to stumble across about half a dozen smaller flushes, all growing under Holly! We returned to the cars at lunch time and continued foraying in a different part of the old quarry, accessed along an original sunken pathway. Our afternoon was spent in a damper part of the wood. We came across Lentinellus cochleatus with its lovely aniseed smell. Conocybe arrhenia was growing along the side of a muddy pathway. This species of Conocybe has a ring on the stem which aids identification. Close by we also found Mycena pelianthina (similar to M. pura but with a dark edge to the gills) as well as M. rosea. 39 species were recorded during our visit. Amanita citrina © R. Mantle

Dudmaston Estate 13th Oct This is a place which we usually foray each year and we followed the usual format of going into Comer Wood in the morning. Here we found plenty to delight us including Paxillus atromentosus (sadly no English name that I am aware of but it does have a new scientific name Tapinella atromentosa). There was also a large and resplendent fruitbody of Dyer’s Mazegill Phaeolus schweinitzii. This is an interesting fungus that is a pathogen of conifers, causing brown rot in the roots and the base of the trunk. Brown rot occurs when the cellulose is eaten by the fungus leaving the lignin behind. Cellulose is the “glue” that holds the cells together and so the wood loses strength very quickly. The fungus can be used to produce dyes for dying wool. The colours range from yellow through to dark brown depending on which part of the mushroom is used and which mordant is put to it to bind it to the fibres. The conifers in Comer Wood are having a bad time as two more pathogens were found. A large mass of the Cauliflower Fungus Sparassis crispa was found and the Root Rot Fungus Heterobasidion annosum, both of which attack conifer roots. The latter is responsible for major losses in conifer woods and plantations. We normally park by a small cottage. When we went back for Phaeolus schweinitzii © R. Mantle lunch we were told by a man in the 5

garden that he owned the land and that we could not park there, and I had to talk very nicely to him to allow us to stay for the afternoon. Les had a word with Mike Annis the estate’s head Warden and it turns out that the man in the garden was not the owner but his son and that we are able to park there as usual in future. The owner, Stuart, would even like to come out with us. In the afternoon we walked down to the lake and across the field. Here we found a range of Coprinus domesticus © R. Mantle woodland and grassland fungi. The highlight for me, because I hadn’t seen it before, was the Firerug Inkcap Coprinellus domesticus growing on some fallen branches. It produces a mat of rusty coloured mycelium called an ozonium, and whilst there was only a small amount on the branch that it was on, other branches had plenty.

C. domesticus ozonium © R. Mantle Earl’s Hill 3rd November This was the first reserve acquired by the Shropshire Wildlife Trust and is an SSSI. Our, now quite large, group found quite a number of notable species. A very large specimen of the Penny Bun Boletus edulis was found for us all to admire; this is so often on the menu in posh restaurants that it is often called by the French name the Cep. The Collared Earthstar Geastrum triplex is having a good year as it has been found on a number of 2012 forays including this one. A lichen covered fallen Ash tree provided two rarely recorded fungi which are parasitic on lichens. The first one, Illosporiopsis christiansenii, appears as tiny pink cushions amongst the lichen whilst the other, Xanthoriicola physciae, Illosporiopsis chistiansenii © R. Mantle darkens the apothecia (little cups) of, usually, Xanthoria parietina. On the base of a living Ash were an attractive group of Shaggy Scalycaps Pholiota squarrosa all set up for a photoshoot. Higher up the hill, above the trees some waxcaps were Hygrocybe ceracea © R. Mantle found, including the striking yellow Hygrocybe ceracea. Squamanita paradoxa had been found a few weeks earlier but all the specimens had been collected and a trip to the location proved fruitless, but on the way we discovered Hapalopilus nidulans an unusual small soft bracket which turns the colour of blackberry juice when spotted with KOH (potassium hydroxide). I was surprised to see Chlorophyllum olivieri on a list of Jo’s finds and when I asked her about it she explained that this is the new name for the Shaggy Parasol which used to be Lepiota rhacodes then became Macrolepiota rhacodes then I thought it changed to Chlorophyllum rhacodes however it didn’t and it is now Chlorophyllum olivieri. Confused! I was but all we need to remember is that Macrolepiota rhacodes is now Chlorophyllum olivieri. 6

Whitcliffe Common 1st December The morning was cold and wet at first but brightening up later and we were treated to some spectacular views of Ludlow Castle. In the wet grass, our first find was the Dewdrop Mottlegill Panaeolus acuminatus (syn. P. rickenii). The English name comes from the fact that droplets of water collect on the stem. Those nearer the top collect the dark and when they dry leave small dark dots. Once in the woodland two nice specimens of the Yellow Brain Tremella mesenterica were found and further down the path the colourful Silverleaf Fungus Chondrostereum purpureum was collected from the trunk of a living sycamore tree. A dead pine was covered on the shady side by Serpula Chondrostereum purpureum picture © C. Anderson hand © C. himantioides with its distinctive brown colour and white Garnett edge. This is a close relative of the Dry Rot Fungus Serpula lacrymans which seriously damages structural timbers in buildings. The original infestation starts in wood that has been wet for some time as the result of a leak or something similar. The mycelium travels over any surface and can penetrate mortar and plaster. Usually this type of fungus material cannot operate in the dry but in the case of Serpula lacrymans it transports its own moisture drawn from the damp origin. Another jelly fungus turned up, Witches Butter, Exidia glandulosa, which is soft and black. Sharp eyes also picked out Jelly Babies Leotia lubrica in the oak litter

Leotica lubrica © R. Mantle Serpula himantioides © R. Mantle BEECHWOOD SHUFFLE

My twin size 10s plough up the rich mould beneath the golden leaves Shuffling forward, Autumn’s gait. Scooping skyward I launch handfuls of earth’s aroma. I imagine bags of this wood’s dung dug into my garden then imagine more strongly the effort required to get it there. The sun plays and dances on the decay and that’s O.K. Stumps and trunks, twigs and leaves, All slowly going the same way. Riding the carbon unicycle. The circling circus. the fungal festival. Do you belong to the mycorrhizal association? It’s a close knit community with ties worldwide Roots and branches for fun guys and gals Any one can join But beware the fungicidal lobby A billion tiny death’s their hobby. Be bold mould, open the door Form the mushroom cloud that gives life.

By Rob Rowe 7

A Brief History of the Fungus (and the important changes that they made) compiled by Roy Mantle

This article started out as a brief look at the important effects of fungi in history but as I wrote and researched things grew a little out of hand! I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed putting it together.

Whilst there are no fossil records from this period it is believed that fungi and land plants appeared on Earth about 700 million years ago. (This was calculated using later fossil evidence to work out the rate of molecular change. This change is linear with time and so the line can be traced back to give a date.) This is only a rough figure and there are estimates that they could have split off as a separate life form as early as 1500 million years ago. They seem to have invaded the land as symbiotic partners of photosynthesising organisms such as green algae. Fossil records of fungal fruit bodies are almost non-existent as they are soft and decay quickly and most fossils have come to light as more robust organism have been examined microscopically and the fungal hyphae have been seen. There are some records of fungal spores. These fossil records show that fungi were living with plants during the Devonian period (400 million years ago) much as they do today feeding on the living plants or on their dead remains. Plants at this time were quite small, the largest being about a metre tall. As plants flourished they began to increase the carbon dioxide levels and decrease the oxygen levels to such an extent the some mammals, particularly those living in water, were exterminated as they got insufficient oxygen to enable them to breath. Also the increase in carbon dioxide levels caused the temperature to rise making the Earth like a greenhouse and a perfect place for plant growth. The burgeoning plants evolved a new substance, lignin, to give them rigidity as they grew progressively bigger and bigger. As we enter the Carboniferous period huge plants such as tree ferns were evolving growing ever bigger using the new strengthening substance lignin. Previous agents of decay, microbes and fungi could not break down this new substance and so the giant plants fell and built up an enormous layer of dead material. This was about 310 million years ago. This accumulation of plant material had a number of consequences. The layer of plants compressed down to form the coal measures which fuelled the industrial revolution in recent times. Also all the dead plants locked up their carbon and thus carbon dioxide levels began to fall and oxygen levels rose to an all time high of 35%. As a comparison this level is presently 21%. Arthropods, insects, spiders etc. breathe by air diffusing into tiny tubes which reach all parts of their bodies and so the distance that the air has to travel along these tube limits their size. However by increasing the oxygen level these creatures could grow bigger and centipedes three feet long, spiders with eighteen inch legs, and scorpions fifty pounds in weight were not uncommon. It was about 19 million years before the fungi evolved enzymes to breakdown the lignin. Once they had caught up and were able to decay plants as they died oxygen levels began to fall (to about 15%) causing arthropods to become smaller and animals to create new ways to use the much reduced supply. The ability to regulate the body temperature gave the animals a way of using available oxygen more efficiently and so this stress gave us warm blooded creatures. All this because the fungi lagged behind. In AD 54 the Roman emperor Claudius died suddenly at the age of 64. He had been married four times and his wives were Plautia, Paetina, Messalina and Agrippina. It was well known that Agrippina was a scheming and devious woman who desperately wanted her son Nero to be emperor but Messalina’s son Brittanicus was also a contender and at the time was only a few months from gaining his majority which would give him an advantage over Nero. After Claudius’s death rumour was rife and suspicion fell on Agrippina. It is widely assumed that she put poison into a plate of that Claudius ate and it was also thought that the poisonous culprit was Amanita phalloides the Deathcap. Poisoning at that time was a favourite way of getting rid of people that you disliked or got in the way and it was almost impossible to prove. Let’s look at what happens with Deathcap poisoning. Nothing occurs for 6-10 hours (or even longer) after ingestion. The first symptoms are stomach pains, vomiting and diarrhoea. These may continue for a day or two, after which there is typically an easing of symptoms and apparent recovery. The "recovery" period may last for 2 or 3 days. Then the terminal phase of 3-5 days starts with the re-occurrence of stomach pains, vomiting and diarrhoea - accompanied by jaundice. The poisonous substances in the fungus attack the nucleus of a human cell which contains the DNA that is, in effect, the instruction book for the cell and tells it how to work. These deadly compounds within the Deathcap stop the cell reading its own instruction book and the cell dies. If enough cells in a human liver or kidney are affected and die, then there will be catastrophic liver or kidney failure - and then death. 8

Now back to Claudius. Reports by witnesses say that death was rapid; within a few hours. This is obviously inconsistent with Deathcap poisoning. Some say he had diarrhoea and others said this was accompanied with vomiting. It may be that these reports were manipulated by various factions for political reasons to make them appear worse or better than they were. I have always wanted to believe that old Claudius was despatched with a Deathcap, but I think the jury is still out on this and we may never know the truth of the matter. As we come forward into medieval times another fungus makes its mark on history. There were many accounts of whole communities falling ill with very strange symptoms such as burning hands and feet, convulsions, fits, hallucinations and uncontrollable twitching. The head man and elders did not have any cure but to them it was plain that the people were bewitched. The witches were sought out and put on trial. They were often old women who lived alone and kept themselves to themselves, and if found guilty (and most were) they were burned or drowned. Much of Europe at this time existed on rye bread and the work done by Mary Matossian shows that most witchcraft trials occured where most rye is grown. For example in Ireland where the staple food was potatoes, only one witchcraft trial took place but East Anglia, where a great deal of rye was grown, had many witch hunts and trials. Also most trials took place after cold wet Springs. The most famous witch trial of all took place, not in Europe but in Salem in America. The founding fathers had taken rye seeds from England with them to grow and give them their daily bread. In the early 1690s records show that this area suffered from unusually cold wet Springs and by 1692 the whole area was in the grip of a witch hunt like no other. Hundreds of people were rounded up and imprisoned. From the resulting trials 20 of them were executed and many died in prison of cold and hunger. The rest were released when the colony eventually admitted that the trials had been a mistake. The evidence from Mary Matossian is persuavive but does have many critics. It was not until the 18th century that a possible culprit was found, Claviceps purpurea Ergot. This parasitizes the flowers of many grasses and cereals (rye is particularly susceptible) and looks like tiny thin black sausages amongst the seeds of the grass. These black “sausages” are about 12 or 15mm long by 2mm wide and are the resting stage (sclerotium) of the fungus. This sclerotium falls to the ground in the autumn where it overwinters. In the spring it produces little drumstick like fruitbodies which release sexual windborne spores Any that land on the stigma of a suitable grass produce a hyphal tube that invades the ovary and uses any food that would have been used to swell the seed to produce fungal tissue. The fungus then produces a great number of asexual spores and a sweet substance which attracts insects to distribute them. In late summer the fungus goes into its resting stage or sclerotium and the cycle is complete.These sclerotia were harvested with the rye and ground into flour. Archaeological samples of grain and flour show high contamination by ergot. The symptoms and course of the disease known as ergotism are well documented and there seems to have been two ways in which it progressed. The one was gangrenous ergotism and this began by an intense burning feeling in the hands and feet. A hospital dedicated to St Anthony successfully cared for some of the afflicted and hence this manifestation became known a St Anthony’s fire. In the later stages death is preceded by the withering and loss of fingers, toes and even whole limbs. The other is convulsive ergotism Claviceps purpurea © C. Anderson which is characterised by muscular twitching (St Vitus’s dance) and seizures similar to epilepsy. In the later stages, sufferers experience formication, the sensation of ants running about beneath the skin, and hallucinations. One of the most important changes was brought about by Phytophthora infestans Potato Blight. This completely changed Ireland forever. A huge proportion of the population was dependent on the potato for food but between 1845 and 1852 the blight ruined the crop. Over one million people died and another million emigrated reducing the population by some 20% to 25%. Ireland was not the only country to be affected; in all it caused some two million people to be displaced. The Potato Blight affected Europe and 9

America but because the people there were not so dependent on this single crop the affect was not so great as in Ireland. Also at this time there was trouble with the English and this was exacerbated by the way in which they dealt with the situation. The English landlords usually turned over the collection of rents to middle men as this ensured them of a steady income with virtually no effort and as the landlords often lived in England this was seen as the best management plan. It was, however, the worst plan for the Irish peasants because these middlemen realized that by splitting the land up into ever smaller parcels they could make more money and cream some off for themselves. These tiny pieces of land were too small to grow cereals or raise livestock and the only crop that they could grow to feed their families was potatoes. They were so poor that their dwellings were seldom a protection against the weather and a bed or a blanket was a rare luxury. After the Great Potato Famine it was made illegal to further sub-divide land but this harsh treatment by the English landlords finally lead to Irish independence. In more modern times we come to one of the most important accidents ever to take place. In 1928 Alexander Fleming was culturing a staphylococcus bacterium on an agar plate. Accidentally a blue green mould spore contaminated the agar and began to grow. Fleming noticed that the area around the mould was free of the bacterium so the mould was inhibiting its growth. The contaminating agent was Penicillium notatum. In 1938 a team was working on naturally produced including penicillin. A member of this team Dr Ernest Chain succeeded in producing a pure sample of penicillin from a sub-culture of the original mould and the work began to find ways of producing this in quantity and to do all the necessary trials to make it safe to use on humans. In the 1960s the increasing population was causing us to look at producing a substitute for protein to feed the ever growing multitudes. It had to be quick to produce and it would need to be made in large quantities. We know that mushroom fruitbodies are good to eat but they are slow to produce and were at that time labour intensive. It was an insect that showed us the way. The Ambrosia Beetle bores holes in wood and takes with it a fungus. This fungus can digest cellulose and lignin which the beetle is unable to do and then it fills the tunnels with hyphal threads which the beetle and its larvae eat. It provides them with a rich source of protein. So we learnt that the fruitbody was not the only edible part. In 1967 a mould was collected from a field in Marlow in Buckinghamshire. This was a species of Fusarium, a mould which forms on food left too long but also the same mould that provides food for the Ambrosia Beetle. Could this also provide food for us? After much research a company was formed called Marlow food and they had developed a method of continuous production of fungal material which could be used by humans as a source of protein. They called this substance Quorn and it can be flavoured, textured and shaped to look like fish or meat. Sales of Quorn now rival those of cultivated mushrooms in Britain. At the present time we continue to fight a war against fungal diseases affecting our crops, our livestock and ourselves. On the other hand they are of enormous economic value. In 2005 74,000 tons of edible mushrooms were grown in the British Isles worth an estimated £104 million. Quantities of Quorn are in a similar league. Many drugs are now of fungal origin; the most common ones are the statins used to control cholesterol levels in the blood. There is a fungus Tolypocladium inflatum that is being used to prevent organ rejection in transplants. Many industrial processes depend upon fungi the most obvious being the production of alcohol and bread but less obvious examples are the production of fizzy drinks, chocolate and coffee. But what of the future. Many more drugs will be found within the fungal kingdom and there are signs that some species of Ganoderma may be helpful in the treatment of some cancers. A new type of wound dressing will be available made from a range of filamentous fungi. The filaments contain chitin and research has shown that this substance can speed up the healing of wounds and encourages the production of fibroblasts. Fibroblasts help build new tissue. This process has the potential to treat chronic ulcers and by speeding up healing they save money, time and weeks of discomfort for patients. These are just a couple of examples of the work that is being carried out on fungi and who really knows what will be found in the future. 10

Charlotte’s Gallery (with a little help from Clive)

Mycologists!!! At Earl’s Hill

Amanita phalloides the Death Cap found in Abbey Woods Pleurotus dryinus Veiled Oyster at Earl’s Hill

Morchella esculenta Morels Basket from our Granville foray. 11

Why use a microscope? Les Hughes When we start out with an interest in mushrooms, we might issue those words most dreaded by mycologists, “Can you eat it?”. After a time however mushrooms turn into fungi, and as we spend more time looking around for them in woodland and grassland it soon becomes clear that the big red one with the spots on is great when you start, but after you’ve seen it a few times it loses its novelty value, and you want to look for something a bit more difficult to identify, a bit more challenging. Then, as you get to be able to have a good idea which genus what you see belongs to, you start wanting to find things which are a bit more difficult to identify, which you have to think twice about, and which are often much less visually appealing. The next phase is when you realise it’s better to keep your mouth shut when you see something, because you are starting to realise that there are too many factors to be taken into account to be able to speak out in public, and offer an ID, because there are so many reasons why you might be wrong. It really is a pastime which makes you realise that the more you understand the less you know. After that there is only one thing to do. You launch yourself into a whole new world. You set out looking for big clumps of brightly coloured mushrooms, but you find yourself being more and more intrigued by little brown jobs, and things that all look alike. This is when you realise that walking through the woods and the fields isn’t going to be enough. You are going to need to spend time indoors, learning a completely different vocabulary, and looking at tiny aspects of what you’ve gathered, and then you know. You have to have a microscope. Suddenly you are in a different world. You thought you’d developed a liking for the great outdoors, but in fact you are condemning yourself to a life looking down a tube. And the collecting basket, and knife you thought were really trendy are supplemented by collecting pots, razor blades, microscope slides, and chemicals. Nothing is any longer too small or insignificant for you to want to get to know it better. Someone tells you that the bit you’ve carefully cut up to go under the scope is too big. If you can see it, it’s probably too much. How do you go about navigating this new world? My view is that if you set out looking for clamps, and small variations in the shape of microscopic structures like cystidia you will rapidly get frustrated, and may even give up. So why not try some of the easier things first? These are a few photos I’ve taken using the microscope, but which give you an easy way of identifying a particular species. There are only a few, but I’d like to think everyone reading this can come up with one or two more simple ways of nailing down a specific fungus without spending hours doing so. Have a look at these, and then come up with you own suggestions. Our website would be a good place to keep a folder of suggestions and photos which prove the point. Send your ideas to us at [email protected], and we will set up a page devoted to easy identification down the microscope. You don’t need to supply a photo, although that would be great, but any tip about easing identification can be included. Here are my photos:

Physalids, the balloon cells in the cap cuticle of Clitocybe The curly hairs on the external surface of Sarcoscypha austriaca phaeophthalmus 12

The dagger-like cystidia of Macrocystidia curcumis The harpoon shaped cystidia on Pluteus

Globose cells of the cap cuticle of Pluteus chrysophaeus Chrysocystidia in Stropharia cyanea Microscope Day 9th June

This was held at the Secret Hills Discovery Centre in Craven Arms. The purpose of the meeting was to demonstrate the use of a microscope to identify fungi. Four people brought their equipment and samples to look at. These were Ted Blackwell, Les Hughes, Harvey Morgan and Roy Mantle. Harvey and Les were doing larger stuff whilst Ted was showing us some of his herbarium specimens of small fungi. Roy did a general introduction to the microscope for those people who did not have one. Techniques of preparing material to go under the micro scope such as taking thin slices with razor blade, making “squashes” and looking at spores with the oil immersion lens. Harvey used his microscope to look at the gill edge cystidia of Pluteus cervinus the Deer Fungus stained with Congo Red at 1000x magnification. This showed, well, the large hooked cystidia which give this fungus its common name. Ted is the most experienced with a microscope and he has written the following. FULLER AND MORE FASCINATING WITH A MICROSCOPE Ted Blackwell For those who have come to grips with the Agarics and larger fungi and eventually think of extending their skills to microscope techniques, Ted set out to emphasise that once you acquire a microscope, the door is thrown open to boundless entertainment.

A microscope offers limitless scope for exploration, not only of the microstructure of toadstools, but of another much wider and varied fascinating world of hoards of different microfungi. For mycologists who like detective work and the challenge of solving puzzles, multitudes of small microfungi of endless variety become available for scanning under the microscope. 13

There is no shortage, they are constantly abundant. They are not tied to the autumn and can be found throughout the year. Additionally, they occur on a large variety of living plants, on wood and dead vegetation, and even on insects. Unending interest can be had from the huge variety of shapes and structures, colours and patterns of fruiting bodies and their spores, together with the often surprising and sometimes weird life-styles of certain groups. In all these, one could be spoilt for choice, because there are a number of different groups to consider, each bringing scope for a special interest.

First to consider are the Ascomycetes, embracing the two major sections of Cup Fungi (Discomycetes), and Flask fungi (Pyrenomycetes); and in turn, the Conidial fungi, many of which are known to be imperfect states of Ascomycetes.

For those who know their plants, there are interesting Ascomycetes that colonise or parasitise plants where part of the ID technique is knowing what the plant is. These include such as the Leaf Mildews (Erysiphales), often noticeable as a white mould on plants in summer, producing their spores in neat pill- like capsules bearing interestingly-shaped wavy appendages.

A related group are the Lichens, a composite organism of an Ascomycete in partnership with an alga or cyanobacterium, growing together and forming many characteristic shapes and colours, again, all-the-year round fungi, to be sought not only on trees and plants but also on walls, rocks and churchyard gravestones. In turn, Lichens have other fungi parasitic on them, another group attracting a specialist interest.

Similar leaf-infecting fungi are the Rusts, (Uredinales) exhibiting a complex life-style in several stages often completed on different plants, and producing spores of different shapes. Also the rather less-complex plant-infecting Smuts.

For the more way-out adventurous specialists who prefer variety, Dung Fungi are a wide and fascinating group, involving many taxonomic groups including Conidial fungi, Zygomycetes, Ascomycetes and Basidiomycetes. Of particular interest is the successive emergence of different groups, and aspects such as species occurring on ruminant dung differing from those on rabbit or hare pellets, and different again from other animals such as mice, voles, or shrews. At a certain course on Dung Fungi, in addition to British material, students were able to scan fungi on tiger and elephant dung, the professor having just returned from Africa.

A group known as Ingoldian Fungi produce beautiful star-like, or spirally, or radially-shaped spores. These may be better described as the ’Stream Foam and Wet-leaves Fungi’ because they are collected on sodden leaves from well-aerated babbling brooks and are often entrapped in foam at waterfalls.

Another group where beauty of form is the spur to seeking-out specimens, are the unkindly-named Slime Moulds (Myxomycetes). Unkindly, because although their initial life-style phase is a plasmodial slime, their lasting beauty is in the mature stage that later develops into fruiting sporocarps, which, depending on genus, have an architecture which is sometimes breathtaking in its delicate intricacy. Assembling other insects if examined and you know what you are looking for. These are known acollections of preserved specimens is often favoured by Myxo enthusiasts.

A final word on a much neglected group where records and recorders are nationally few and the field is wide open for new discoveries and records. These are fungi that grow on living insects without apparent harm, said to occur reliably on whirligig-beetles, but found on many s the Laboulbeniales, a sub-group of the Ascomycetes. If you know your insects and arthropods, this world is your oyster.

Therefore, mycologists with microscopes are advantageously placed to advance the knowledge of a wider range of fungi in the county. With the possible exception of the Cup Fungi, most of the above groups are very under-recorded in Shropshire, and there are no records at all for Ingoldian Fungi or Laboulbeniales. So the scope is there, take up the challenge. 14 The Beefsteak Fungus by Justin and Erin

These pictures show what a striking fungus this is when in its prime and the last two show beautifully that the tubes underneath are all separate and not bound together in a single mass like other polypores. Also from them, Fomes fomentarius I think. The Hoof fungus below. 15

Websites as suggested at Group Leaders Meeting

Some you will find useful, others not quite your scene, but try them out and see:

Herbaria United http://herbariaunited.org/gridrefVC/ I use this routinely to check grid refs and vice counties - I find it very helpful indeed. It is underpinned by the OS maps and very easy to use - even I can cope!

Have a go at the next one, try searching for Harry Potter’s Dragons via Google earth and see what you get! http://livingrecord.net/

Here's the Scottish Fungi link: https://sites.google.com/site/scottishfungi/ and I started to pull together some other useful links at https://sites.google.com/site/scottishfungi/useful-links

There are a couple of promising looking online photo albums out there at the moment:

1) A growing number of photos and microscopic images of a wide range of fungi from Mycologues Associes.. - I'm not sure what the full affiliation of these photos is, but perhaps they are associated with Société mycologique de France? http://picasaweb.google.com/108675098872555540610

2) Alina Billeken's Gallery: Some impressive images, especially of the wee fungi! http://picasaweb.google.com/101942005962929825215 www.aber.ac.uk/waxcap Gareth Griffith's website on waxcaps with a wealth of information including an extensive list of downloadable references http://www.cybertruffle.org.uk/cyberliber A electronic library with scanned images from many mycological books, journals and catalogues. www.mycobank.org MycoBank is an on-line database documenting mycological nomenclatural novelties (new names and combinations) and associated data, for example descriptions and illustrations. www.entoloma.nl Machiel Noordeloos' personal site with information on the various groups of Agarics he has studied, including keys, downloads of recent articles, and links to other informative sites. home.online.no/~araronse/mycenapage/mycenapage.html Arne Aronsen's Mycena site with excellent descriptions, images and an online key.

Tom Volk’s Fungi http://botit.botany.wisc.edu/toms_fungi/ http://www.kew.org/plants-fungi/

There are also several websites, already listed on the BMS website, run by some of our local groups. Do visit them as there is a wealth of information, experience and ideas within them. For instance check out the photos etc of slime moulds on Cotswold Fungus Group’s site www.cotswoldfungusgroup.com or go direct to: http://www.cotswoldfungusgroup.com/photogallery/general/fungal-diseases-of-plants/

Finally a great site for beginners with good photographs www.rogersmushrooms.com

I hope you find at least some of these links useful, if anyone has any further suggestions or I have not included some you have sent me already, (sorry), do please share them with us. 16 Some pictures from Mike Middleton

Mike sent these pictures unnamed so these are what I think they are., starting top left and going clockwise. A Bonnet Fungus Mycena sp. The Wood Blewit Lepista nuda. The Morel Morchella esculenta and an Eyelash Fungus Scutellinia sp. 17 Pictures From John Newnham taken around Westhope at the end of August

These came un-named but I think the bottom left is Hygrocybe conica and the rest are Inonotus hispidus 18 Fixture List 2013

This is very much a draft list as some of the venues still need confirmation but put these dates in your Diary. I hope to have all the details sorted by the AGM.

13th April Old Rectory Wood. Leader Les Hughes

1st September. Wales. Leader Judith Jenkins.

14th September. Earnwood Copse Wyre. Leader Roy Mantle.

6th October. Lloyds Coppice. Leader Les Hughes

13th October. National Fungus Day at the Secret Hills Discovery Centre

20th October. Stiperstones. Leader Roy Mantle.

2nd November. Nesscliffe . Leader Harvey Morgan

14th November Benthall Edge Wood. Leader Les Hughes.

24th November Limekiln Wood. Leader Roy Mantle