Strolling through the Finnish woods (ID's needed, pic heavy)

[Bushy Crafter]

Last month my girlfriend and I decided to get away from the city for a day and went to a forest about half an hour away by bus (The joys of living in Finland).

While my girlfriend was out collecting berries (our fridge is stuffed with wild bilberries and raspberries ) I decided to shoot some pictures of anything I’d like to get an ID on.

I was hoping that the knowledgeable community here could help me identify the various berries/mushrooms/animals below and let me know whether I ID’ed the rest correctly. Where applicable any thoughts on edibility would be highly appreciated.

Thanks,

I somehow did not manage to use to "upload from computer function, so have to share via imageshack.

The famous bilberries, they took over pretty much any sunny spot in the woods.

Red currants I believe, although they tasted terrible and way different then I expected. Best to leave them alone?

Wild strawberry! Managed to find some decent patches of shrubs, but unfortunately only found 2 strawberries, wrong time of the year perhaps?

No clue what this is..

Nor this..

Or this..

An interesting mushroom, should not be too hard to ID? I'm still looking for an english mushroom guide, unfortunately I can only find Finnish ones over here.

I wish I could tell what type of tree this one was on, but I am absolutely terrible at ID'ing trees.

What animal would live here? there are two distinctive "lines" leading to the hole, hopefully giving some sort of clue?

Some sort of Dragonfly, it had yellow and black markings and they were plentiful hoovering over the rocks we were resting on. (My hands are covered in bilberry stains..)

The common lizard! Or at least I think so, none of the Finns I have asked have ever seen one and most did not even know lizards live in Finland so I feel really lucky that I managed to spot this one (twice! It escaped before I could take the picture the first time)

Well, I hope you can help me with the above. Definitely will have to order a couple of pocket guides on berry/plants/herbs in the future.

 

[Suomäki]

second picture is taikinamarja = alpine currant http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ribes_alpinum

fifth is pihlaja = rowan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sorbus

sixth is aronia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aronia

 

[Bushy Crafter]

Thanks Suomäki! I've learned something today

 

[jonnie drake]

I think the 4th is cowberry. I would have agreed with redcurrant too, looks very similar.the mushrooms look like chanterelles, but I hate guessing mushroom species! Your dragonfly is more likely to be a damsel fly, very similar but smaller, and much more likely to occur in large numbers.

 

[Martti]

I wish I could tell what type of tree this one was on, but I am absolutely terrible at ID'ing trees.

The tree is a Common Aspen (Populus tremula).

The common lizard! Or at least I think so, none of the Finns I have asked have ever seen one and most did not even know lizards live in Finland so I feel really lucky that I managed to spot this one (twice! It escaped before I could take the picture the first time)

There are actually only two lizard species in Finland, this one and slow worm (Anguis fragilis). Both are not that rare even in Finland so I think they might have tried pull your leg in this one.

 

[Suomäki]

mushrooms could chanterelles ...

 

[forestwalker]

There are actually only two lizard species in Finland, this one and slow worm (Anguis fragilis). Both are not that rare even in Finland so I think they might have tried pull your leg in this one.

Or they may just not have been outdoorsy/nature people. Lots of Swedes would not know what lizards live here.

 

[Bushy Crafter]

Or they may just not have been outdoorsy/nature people. Lots of Swedes would not know what lizards live here.

I think this one is more likely . Plenty of folks here have seen snakes though, I (luckily) haven't yet.

 

[Bushy Crafter]

I think the 4th is cowberry. I would have agreed with redcurrant too, looks very similar.the mushrooms look like chanterelles, but I hate guessing mushroom species! Your dragonfly is more likely to be a damsel fly, very similar but smaller, and much more likely to occur in large numbers.

I was browsing online and the dragonfly looks a lot like the female British black tailed skimmer (size and pattern), but the almighty wiki says they don't live here?

 

[Geoff Dann]

mushrooms could chanterelles ...

Yes, the yellow ones are chanterelles. The bracket looks like some sort of Ganoderma, but not one I'm familiar with.

 

[Geoff Dann]

I asked for advice from the Association of British Fungus groups about that bracket...

It is probably Fomitopsis pinicola which is rare in the UK but more common in Europe. And I think the tree is probably birch.

 

[Bushy Crafter]

Thank you Geoff. My companion already thought the yellow ones were chanterelles, but she did not have her mushroom guide with her. Seems like we have to go back to harvest some as we spotted quite a few patches of them.

The one growing on the tree suits the descriptions of a Fomitopsis pinicola very well, although I should have taken a photo from the underside I suppose. They appeared to be quite common in the patch of forest we walked through.

So, so far we have:

1. Bilberry
2. Alpine Currant (Thanks Suomäki) Does anyone know how I can tell the difference between red and alpine?
3. Wild Strawberry
4. Cowberry (Thanks jonnie drake) Although I suppose people refer to them here as LIngonberries. I actually had a taste of one when I was there and should have recognized it..
5. Rowan berry. (Thanks Suomäki)
6. Aronia. (Thanks Suomäki)
7. Chanterelles. Thanks jonnie drake and Geoff Dann for confirming)
8. Fomitopsis pinicola (Thanks Geoff Dann)
9. - No guesses?
10. I thought a female black tailed skimmer, but they are not supposed to live here from what I could find
11. Common Lizard