Kilvey Hill 22-02-11

A damp misty day.. I felt I better have a look up Kilvey Hill to see what was about. At this time of year the emphasis is on looking for fungi that grows on dead wood and there is plenty of that around on the hill.
Not everything found was a 'bracket', 'crust' or 'curtain' and one in particular was a mystery.

I have to admit that I have generally overlooked these types of fungi in the past. 'Crusts' are not the most photogenic of fungi but under a hand lens their surfaces are transformed into canyons of remarkable intricacy and complexity.

It was not long before I came across mycelium growing on leaf litter and on broken and fallen dead branches.

Dead tree trunks and branches provide nourishment for 'crusts', 'bracket' and 'curtain' fungi. Below is a species I've had some difficulty identifying. The second photo is the same fungi but at a different stage in its development. It could be a number of fungi.

On a felled conifer trunk I came across a fungi I've not encountered on Kilvey before. Gloeophyllum sepiaruim/Conifer Mazegill.

   

The fruitbody is attached to the wood by a very short stalk and spreads out, sometimes creating a rosette look. It's maroon in colour and darker in the centre but as can be seen below becomes lighter as it extends outwards becoming  very pale at the edge.

Its surface can be slightly felty or hairy  to the touch and the common name refers to the pore structure underneath..

On Kilvey Hill there is one particular bracket that is very abundant; Trichaptum abietinum (=Hirschioporus abientinus) Purplepore Bracket. Its widespread and very common everywhere and very easy to spot due to the purple coloured pore surface, (which turns brown with age). It's fan shaped, up to 5cm across in rows or tiers and can completely cover tree trunks. It grows on fallen and decayed conifer wood.

                                         

Another species of fungi out in good numbers was Tremella mesenterica/Yellow Brain. The Tremella species are parasitic and they live off the mycelium of another fungi, Peniphora, (which is a crust fungi).

On my way down the hill towards Port Tennant I come across this unusual looking, jellylike fungi. I think it might belong to the Tremella family too but I've never seen anything like this before..

In Jersey Park there are two more bracket fungi to find before going home and both are very common. Below is Bjerkandera adusta/Smoky Bracket..

The pore side of this bracket has a distinct grey colour and when young the margin is white above and below. The fungi has a suede like feel and is leathery tough to the feel.

Below is a rather fine example in the variations of colour produced by Trametes versicolor/Turkeytail. This one was attached to an old wooden stump in the soil

At Lake Pluck.

On the 8th of February I went for a quick look for fungi down at Lake Pluck. Most of what I found was on two very large sections of cut tree trunks. Other highlights were teenagers smashing up a burnt out car and shopping trolleys taking a dip in the water..Nevertheless Lake Pluck is rich in fungi and last year revealed some great finds. Hopefullly it will be the same this year.

On the way to the Pluck there were two things of note; one was a lichenised fungi, Cladonia pyxidata which is common everywhere and the other was Stereum hirsutum/Hairy Curtain Crust, an extremley common species of fungi.  Below is Cladonia pyxidata...

Stereum hirsutum/Hairy Curtain Crust is generally found on living and dead wood of deciduous trees and shrubs; rarely conifers. The upper side of the fungi as the common name describes, is hairy with the underside smooth and bumpy.

Sadly, the Pluck is a fly tippers paradise and the sheer amount of rubbish thrown here is terrible..Inbetween binbags full of clothes and beercans all over the place I came across the remains of a huge beech tree that had been felled and on one large block there were a couple of mushrooms to be found. Below is a common species called a Smoky Bracket. Bjerkandera adusta.

  

The photo below shows the mycelium of an unknown fungus living off the the wood on the underside of bark

 There were two bracket fungi that I could not identify (below). If I could have cut them off the tree I might have done so but for the moment I'll leave them alone.

Also here was Auricularia auricula-judae/Jelly Ear. Very common and widespread. The samples below had dried out somewhat and were slightly brittle and hard. Auricularia auricula-judae/Jelly Ear is not specific with beech but can be found on most deciduous trees.

Another common beech fungi is Hypoxylon fragiforme/Beech Woodwart. They begin life a pinkish colour and slowly redden until they turn reddish brown and finally black. The surface of the fruit body is pimply.

 On my home I came across a tiny 'oysterling' mushroom. It belongs to the Crepidotus family and could be Crepidotus variabilis/Variable Oysterling but I cannot be sure.