Sulphur tuft © Justin Smith

Features from Wildlife magazine Wildlife articles 2008 -- Spring 2008 -- ::Severn Barrage ::The Variety of life ::A year at Willsbridge ::Willsbridge comes of age ::Reaching out - Willsbridge ::Round the reserves Wildlife articles 2007 -- Autumn 2007 -- ::Thinking BIG ::Watery webs:the pond network ::Wildlife in the landscape ::Variety of life ::How to be a climate friend ::Seasonal stroll - Walborough ::Round the reserves -- Summer 2007 -- ::The Folly Farm appeal ::Weston Big Wood-biodiversity at its best ::The variety of life ::How to capture a butterfly ::How to get to know an orchid ::Seasonal stroll - WestonBigWood ::Reserves update -- Spring 2007 -- ::Folly Farm - a very special place ::Making a difference at Folly Farm ::How find the magic at Folly Farm ::Seasonal stroll at Folly Farm ::Magic spots at Folly Farm ::Batscapes ::Climate challenge ::Variety of Life - the Ponways project ::Round the reserves Wildlife articles 2006 -- Autumn 2006 -- ::The Severn Estuary ::Bird Watch results ::How to identify garden birds ::Making space for wildlife ::How does your garden grow? ::Round the reserves -- Summer 2006 -- ::Going for green ::Stand up and be counted ::Happy birthday NSLMP ::Holi day - a riot of spring colour ::Avon's species-rich grassland ::How to photograph dragonflies ::The Big Switch ::Round the reserves -- Spring 2006 -- ::How to identify winter water birds ::Make 2006 the year you... ::Invasive invasion ::Sowing the seeds: Willsbridge Mill ::Round the reserves Wildlife articles 2005 -- Autumn 2005 -- ::Indentify common funghi ::Build a hedgehog hideaway ::Big Bird Watch ::Champions for wildlife ::Round the reserves ::Seeds of the futre: Willsbridge Mill -- Summer 2005 -- ::Restoring Folly Farm ::How to become bee-friendly ::How to identify the butterflies of spring ::Save our seas ::The variety of life: hedgerows ::Round the reserves ::25 Ways to make a difference -- Spring 2005 -- ::The variety of life: water voles ::The Avon Biodiversity Action Plan ::How to take really good wildlife photos ::How to help your garden grow ::Round the reserves ::Seasonal strolls: Browns Folly ::Sowing the seeds: for wildlife for people ::Sowing the seeds: looking back

How to...

identify the common fungi of autumn

Pick up any guide to British fungi and one of the first things that strikes you is just how many different shapes, sizes and colours of species there are - over 2500 larger species in the UK! So how do you begin to get familiar? Justin Smith is a mycologist (fungi expert) who works with us on our botanical training programmes, and here he passes on top tips to help you identify ten of our more commonly encountered species.

Identifying spore-colour
This is easily done by cutting the stem off and laying the cap, gill side down, on white paper and leaving it for a few hours. A pattern will form, like a bicycle wheel, showing the spore colour.

Useful fungi guides
Justin recommends books with good illustrations and descriptions with as wide a range of species featured as possible, such as:

Mushroom and other Fungi - Roger Phillips (Pan 1981)
Mushrooms and Toadstools of Britain and Europe - R Courtecuisse and B Duhem (Collins Field Guide 1996)

There is also a local fungus group which leads forays and helps in identification. Details from Justin Smith 07810694835.

If you want to find out more about fungi identification, Justin is tutoring one day courses on:

Saturday 8 October contact 0117 928 7172
Saturday 15 October contact 01934 833 723
Saturday 29 October contact 0117 903 0609

What's in a name?
In the past the word mushroom denoted fungi that was useful to man ie edible - and a toadstool was most definitely not! Nowadays, however, use of these words is archaic and mushrooms and toadstools are known as gill fungi.

Amethyst deceiver A dark violet species found on beech wood litter, and named for its amethyst colour and similarity to many other similarly-coloured species. Like the scarlet hood this is another white-spored species.			Scarlet hood A bright red species, one of a group of 'wax caps' typically found in grazed meadows. They can be spotted from quite a distance as they occur in swarms of scarlet caps in autumn.
Beef steak fungus A large fleshy bracket fungus found on old, living oaks. Typically 'flesh-like' in appearance , yielding a red juice. The Spanish call it cow's tongue!			Shaggy scale cap Another tuftal species, tawny yellow in colour, but both the cap and stem are covered in coarse scales. The shaggy scale cap is typically found on beech and has rusty brown spores. It forms colonies as large as the honey fungus, up to one metre wide.
Clouded funnel cap The clouded funnel cap differs from many other 'mushroom' types in being funnel-shaped rather than umbrella-shaped. It is a large grey species that forms fairy rings in woodland in late autumn. Again, the clouded funnel cap has white spores.			Stump puffball These suggest unopened 'mushrooms' but release their spores via an opening in the cap and not from their gills. It grows in cluster on tree stumps.
Ear fungus A reddish brown fungus shaped like an ear, jelly-like in texture when fresh and hard and crusty when dry - it can revive on re-moistening. Very commonly found on dead elderberries.			Sulphur tuft Also forms large tufts at the base of trees, but this species feeds on dead wood only. The caps are much smaller than the honey fungus and bright sulphur yellow in colour, hence the name. This species has purple-brown spores.
Honey fungus A very common parasite of many trees and the bane of both the forester and gardener, it typically forms huge tufts of honey-coloured 'mushrooms' at the base of the host tree. The white spores of this species can often be seen on the caps within the tuft (see below for how to find the colour of spores!)			Velvet shank A late autumn to winter species, typically most common on dead elm trees in hedgerows. The velvet shank also forms tufts but has a greasy orange cap with dark brown velvety stem. Like the honey fungus it also has white spores.

Note: although the above fungi are not poisonous, never eat fungi without consulting an expert.