Was 2008 a good year for rare and unusual fungi

[John Roberts]

Amanita simulans, Aureobasidium apocryptum, Battarrea phalloides, Boletus depilatus,

I do not think that 2008 will go down as a vintage year for foraying, and yet it might well prove to be exceptional in producing a glut of new or unusual species. A quick search through The Forayer, Field Mycology, and several local fungus group newsletters came up with the many species names threaded through this piece.

Byssostilbe stilbigera, Callistosporum luteo-olivaceum, Calonectria erubescens,

In an average year around 50 new species of fungi can be expected to be recorded in the United Kingdom.

Ceriporiopsis herbicola, Cheilymenia fibrillose, Cortinarius poppyzon,

It would be nice to claim that I recognised them all, however many are completely unknown to me. If I live to one hundred and ten may be I will.

Elaphocordiceps longisegmentis, Entoloma jahnii, Entoloma roseoalbum,

Why should this be? Following several dry summers did the weather pattern change? On the face of it, it should have suited fungi; spring was mild and very wet; summer and autumn were much cooler than average and also wet: Many farmers had great difficulty in getting their grain crops harvested.

Melanoleuca verrucipes, Melanotus phillipsii, Mutinus ravenellii, Mycena purpeofusca,

Perhaps the reason for so many interesting species appearing is that forayers are getting much better at recognising a species that is unusual. If so the reason for this may be that more people are attending forays, and are being taught to identify fungi other than those that are safe to eat. There does appear to be a greater interest in Mycology these days.

Omphaloides hydropus scabrides, Paurocotylis pila, Peniophoria proxima,

One of the strange things last year seemed to be a scarcity of common mycorrhizal species, Many Russulas, Lactarius species, and Boletes were hard to find and the situation seemed to be the same over a wide area. Apart from my usual base in the Southwest I forayed in the Hebrides and North-western France and found few of these species. On the Isle of Skye, the normally common woodland Agaric, Russula nigricans was almost absent, as it was in the Southwest, and a similar situation existed in Normandy with Boletus edulus.

Phacellium sorbi, Phellinus wahlbergii, Piptoporus quercinus, Pluteus lactuosus,

Will 2009 bring easier foraying? We do not know, but it will almost certainly produce many more surprises.

Poronia punctata, Psathyrella populinia,Sarcoscypha austriaca v alba, Tricholoma viridilutescens, Tuber aestivum,Russula zvarae,Volvariella reidii………………………………………………….

Hericium

[David Edington]

2008 brought my fellow forayers and I into contact with lots of interesting and 'rare' species not the least of which was Arrhenia chlorocyanea, Phellodon niger and probably Melanoleuca verrucipes. Already 2009 has revealed the return of the Verdigris Navel and also Phaeogalera dissimulans, so the excitement mounts in anticipation of more surprises to come. Good luck to one and all!
David

[David Edington]

[Leif Goodwin]

I don't think 2008 was particularly good for rare fungi. For fungi in general late summer was exceptional, autumn was very poor, and many common agarics were conspicuous by their absence. Some recent invaders such as Gymnopilus dilepis and Agrocybe rivulosa were present, though I think they are becoming frequent.

What I did discover is the amazing amount of data on the internet, some rubbish, much good, which makes it easier to find an id. I located Scytinostroma portentosum on New years Day, and would not have reached an id without the internet, and a Google on "moth balls", "resupinate" and "fungus".

I am of the view that what really matters is finding good collecting sites. I located a marvelous cricket pitch in West Sussex with lots of Hygrocybe species and many rare fungi such as H. splendidissima. I am sure there are many hot spots still to be found. I also think that equally important is having an aptitude for finding species, which often means knowing when to taking a closer look at a particular substrate. In that respect I am a beginner. I was reading last night an article explaining how to find hypogeneous fungi. It seems to be a skill one can learn.

[admin]

A TVK for Psathyrella scatophila shall be applied for promptly! Thanks for the information.

MJ

[David Edington]

Thank you Michael for the verification of the above mentioned Melanoleuca verrucipes found last September by Mushketeer IanTyler. A second record for CATE and the 17th overall for this rare species. The distinctive macro characteristic of this species, the dark grey-brown punctate ornamentaion on the stipe, can clearly be seen in the photo below. Keep those records coming folks!


Found and photographed by Ian and Sally Tyler

Further reading - Ref: The Forayer, Vol 4(3) pp 4-6