Finding fungi

Today I went on the field club fungus outing led by Julian Branscombe and based around Finstown. It was an extremely interesting and enjoyable wee expedition that took us through Binscarth woods and back to the old Kirk yard. I didn’t know much about fungus before but soon began to pick up names and recognise species as we moved through the woods. There was a good turn out today and we spread out locating interesting fungi and getting them identified. This is where the expertise of the field club comes in so handy with so many naturalists to hand to split almost identical looking mushrooms. Milkcaps, Candlesnuf, Glistening inkcap,Inkcaps, Deadmans Fingers, Deceivers, large stands of Honey fungus, it just kept coming! The range and amount in such a small habitat was quite surprising and we were soon scurrying from find to find. It was all good fun and a lot of the time the canopy above was filled with the high pitched calls of the busy newly arrived Goldcrests. With a circuit of the woods done we move off to the old Kirk yard. The unpromising sward of grass proved surprisingly full of fungus as we began a closer inspection. Most obvious to start were the slime moulds, called dog vomit mould in the states and is well named! A variety of Waxcaps, Earth Tounge and Smoky Spindles all looking creepy and exotic in their graveyard setting. To complete the creepy setting a couple of freshly killed and bleeding Redwings below a tombstone told of a Kestrels food cache as it took advantage of today’s bounty. All in all it was a very interesting morning and all to soon over. On the way home I had a quick look in the Stenness Kirk yard and there were even more to identify the best of which was a blue one! I had never seen a blue mushroom before. Its shaping up to be a super weekend!!!

There is a photo album of today’s fungi on the Facebook page if any one fancies a look!!