The Ultimate "What is this Fungi?" thread.

[mercurykev]

I went out for a bit of a fungi forage in the badlands of East Lothian this afternoon and I cam across a couple of very large patches of pretty big mushrooms. The rings were at least 10 feet in diameter and had scores of fruit, each which were between 3 and 8 inches in diameter. These were on the forest floor and the trees were a mix of birch and pine/spruce.

I've taken a couple of pictures of the mushrooms and looking at the Phillips book was thinking that they were some form of Clitocbye (nebularis??)

A few of the fruit clumped together:

The underside of the fruit:

Anyone know what these actually are?

 

[Geoff Dann]

Anyone know what these actually are?

Yes, C. nebularis. Tons of it about at the moment.

 

[Bare Bones]

Hi Bare Bones



I think so.



I'm not sure, but it looks like a Galerina to me and it may well be rather poisonous.

Cheers Geoff

 

[Brennan]

Hi all,
I was out today looking for some Horse Hoof fungus for making amadou for my fly fishing and unfortunately I did not get any. Is it too late in the year? Anyway, I did come across these stuck to a dead tree:

I sliced a bit off the one to the left to expose a white inner flesh. The underside was also white.

I have no idea what they are (but I know they are not what I was looking for). I would like to know what they are, as I seen quite a lot of them.

Kind Regards,
Brennan

 

[Melonfish]

Hi all,
I was out today looking for some Horse Hoof fungus for making amadou for my fly fishing and unfortunately I did not get any. Is it too late in the year? Anyway, I did come across these stuck to a dead tree:

I sliced a bit off the one to the left to expose a white inner flesh. The underside was also white.

I have no idea what they are (but I know they are not what I was looking for). I would like to know what they are, as I seen quite a lot of them.

Kind Regards,
Brennan

Birch polypore? looks like they're growing on a dead birch and they look about right. flesh colour looks right too.

 

[mercurykev]

Yes, C. nebularis. Tons of it about at the moment.

Thanks. I might finally be getting the hang of identifying these things

 

[Brennan]

Hi Melonfish,
Thanks for your post.

Regards,
Brennan

 

[Bushwhacker]

Errrm, probably not a very nice one?

 

[Bushwhacker]

These were rather large.

Candlesnuff.

 

[Iona]

Hi Bushwhacker,

your first post is amanita, so not the nicest of families... Would be easier with a clear shot of the top, and a descrition of the smell, A Citrina (false death cap smells really distinctively like potato peelings, and does have a white variant, but if the cap was inrolled and without veil remnants on the cap in the form of little scales it could be destroying angel A virosa...

Second post, looking at the creamy buff gills and the margin not being too inrolled I'd go with old Clitocybe geotropa, but they could be Leucopaxillux giganteus. There is a slight look of Lactarius Velereus (fleecy milkcap) but one would expect paler gills. You could eliminate this in the field, as with all milkcaps, by cutting the gills to see if any liquid is forthcoming.

Have a google on the above and see what you think.

Iona

 

[Geoff Dann]

Hi Iona

Nice to meet you online as well as in the flesh, and I hope your re-scheduled public session produces more mushrooms than the last one. What a strange year for fungi it has been!

Hi Bushwhacker,

your first post is amanita, so not the nicest of families... Would be easier with a clear shot of the top, and a descrition of the smell, A Citrina (false death cap smells really distinctively like potato peelings, and does have a white variant, but if the cap was inrolled and without veil remnants on the cap in the form of little scales it could be destroying angel A virosa...

I'm not at all sure that is an Amanita. Without a shot of the gills I would say that is more likely to be Agaricus silvicola (wood mushroom). Why? Because the Amanitas, especially A. virosa, have slightly shaggy stems. The picture shows a smooth stem which is consistent with A. silvicola. The ring doesn't help much, since both species have rings, and we can't see the base of the stem to check whether there is a volva.

Second post, looking at the creamy buff gills and the margin not being too inrolled I'd go with old Clitocybe geotropa, but they could be Leucopaxillux giganteus. There is a slight look of Lactarius Velereus (fleecy milkcap) but one would expect paler gills. You could eliminate this in the field, as with all milkcaps, by cutting the gills to see if any liquid is forthcoming.

I'd say that's L. giganteus, but they are pretty hard to distinguish from C. geotropa. Definitely not a milkcap.

The other one is Xylaria hypoxylon (candlesnuff fungus.)

Geoff

 

[Iona]

Hi Geoff, Yes courses have been much better recently, with some really interesting fungi poking their heads up! As far as the first post goes, you're right in that without a shot of the gills there isn't enough to go on, which is why I always say that the poster, (who's had it in their hand/in front of them) should always google/key out whatever I've said for themselves. That said, when you zoom in on the photo, it has a smooth stem above the ring, fluccose below, and is just much whiter than I'd expect to see in A silvicola...

There is always a margin of error in IDing mushrooms from 1 shot, as whichever angle you've shot, there are aspects of the fruiting body you can't see, so I'd love to encourage everyone who'd like a definitive ID to take every angle going. Smell it, break it, cut gills, bruise pores... and to be aware that even then there are many fungi that even mycologists with a lifetime of experience can't ID without a microscope!

As to the second shot, I know Lactarius is unlikely, but fleecy milkcaps have shown up before masquerading, and the only definitive 'out' is the lack of milk I reckon, have to give a poster every oportunity to check definite features for themselves...

And as to the 3rd, I do believe Bushwhacker IDed it himself, rendering us both obsolete!

Essentially, I believe that one should never take an ID given online from a photo as anything other than an educated guess, especially without any additional information, but I'll try to ask the right questions and make them as educated as possible...

And NEVER eat a fungus unless you yourself have been through the book/key yourself and are certain beyond doubt of your OWN identification, anyone else ought just to be a point in a possible right direction.

Hoping to see a lot more before the season dies!

Iona

 

[Geoff Dann]

Hi Geoff, Yes courses have been much better recently, with some really interesting fungi poking their heads up!

I'd agree with that. 2011 has produced some interesting fungi.

As far as the first post goes, you're right in that without a shot of the gills there isn't enough to go on, which is why I always say that the poster, (who's had it in their hand/in front of them) should always google/key out whatever I've said for themselves. That said, when you zoom in on the photo, it has a smooth stem above the ring, fluccose below, and is just much whiter than I'd expect to see in A silvicola...

I guess we'll never know on that one.

Hoping to see a lot more before the season dies!

I'm out again both days this weekend, including one location I've never been to before. I also hope there's at least one more surprise left for this year...

 

[Iona]

Doing some free short wanders for a local forest garden's open day today, not been to their woods before so I'm hoping for at least one new thing there... And sunday there's a foray in London with the local BMS group I think, with Microscope ID session afterward, road testing me possible Xmas presents

This time of year is always a race to fit in as much as possible before the snow hits!

 

[xylaria]

It looks like a amanita citrina to me too. The stem is slightly fibrilose, agaricus silvacola doesnt bounce light like that, it has no yellowing at all, it clearly has vail reminants, i also feel the ring is too pronounced.

 

[sparkplug]

Hi all,

Have had a look through this thread but not seen any quite like the ones I have in my lawn.

We had a new lawn (turf) put in last year and I've not been too good about mowing it regularly. A couple of times there have been mushroooms, always in the same spot when I've left the grass a bit long.

I just mowed the lawn again today (Nov 27) and found a bigger than ever patch of these!

I'm hoping for an ID and in the extremely likely event that these are not edible, is there anything I can do to discourage them from growing?

Thanks

 

[Geoff Dann]

Hi Sparkplug

Those are one of the small inkcap (coprinus) species, probably C. micaceous (glistening inkcap.) They are edible, but a bit pointless (don't taste of much, disintegrate). They are growing on buried wood. They will probably keep coming back until the wood is completely gone.

Why discourage them anyway? They are completely harmless and rather beautiful (I think.)


Geoff

 

[Mafro]

I know its been said here before, but its worth pointing out that inkcaps (apart from the shaggy inkcap) cause an intolerance towards alcohol, so if you do eat them do not drink alcohol with them, or afterwards for about a week.

 

[sparkplug]

Thanks for the ID and the advice on ingestion!

There was an old rowan in the spot where these are growing so I guess it could be the roots decomposing. I'll keep mowing them from time to time then!

Really appreciate your expertise and wisdom - thanks again.

 

[Geoff Dann]

I know its been said here before, but its worth pointing out that inkcaps (apart from the shaggy inkcap) cause an intolerance towards alcohol, so if you do eat them do not drink alcohol with them, or afterwards for about a week.

I think it is only common inkcaps that do that.