Herbivore dung - Have a dung day!

[flaxton]

Along with one or two easy to identify like the spiky C heptemerus

I also dug out a black and very hairy pyriform perithecia


The hairs are thick walled some hooked


The spores are obviously flattened in one plane so show oblong in one view and broadly elipsoid in another



One thing that does not show in this photo is the lateral germ slit.
The spores are c17 x 8.5 in one view and 17 x 11.5 in another.
Although I think this is a Coniochaeta it does not seem to fit well with any species in E&E.
Any thoughts

Thanks
Mal

[Chris Yeates]

Originally Posted by flaxton

Along with one or two easy to identify like the spiky C heptemerus

I also dug out a black and very hairy pyriform perithecia


The hairs are thick walled some hooked


The spores are obviously flattened in one plane so show oblong in one view and broadly elipsoid in another



One thing that does not show in this photo is the lateral germ slit.
The spores are c17 x 8.5 in one view and 17 x 11.5 in another.
Although I think this is a Coniochaeta it does not seem to fit well with any species in E&E.
Any thoughts

Thanks
Mal

it looks very close to C. scatigena - some more shots of the spores (preferably in water) with a bit of a range of spore measurements might help

cheers

Chris

[flaxton]

C scatigena was my best guess Chris so thanks. The one specimen I found had no mature spores so I will keep a look out for another fruit-body. One just to keep me amused C radiata(not as rare as the close cousin C pseudoradiata which developed on another culture but wouldn't allow a decent photo


I must learn to use photoshop or paint shop pro and remove the non artistic background
Mal

[flaxton]

And the distinctive spore of Podospora decipiens. With a flat appendage at one end and a long thin one with a basal tuft at the other.



Mal

[chrisjohnson]

Found in a cluster on Rabbit dung a couple of days ago. The distinct pinkish hue is unusual based on what I have found so far. The apothecia sit on the surface of the sustrate rather than in it. No asci or paraphyses found, just a single spore mass in excess of 500 spores: 8-9.5 x 5-6µm. I'm keying as far as Thelobolus ...

Any help appreciated.

Chris

[mollisia]

Hello Chris,

I find this pinkish blobs ver yoften in dung cultures. Especially on small dung, like of rabbit, sheep etc. I have no idea what it is and would be interested to know. But I'm quite sure that it is something imperfect.

best regards,
Andreas

[chrisjohnson]

Hello Andreas

Interesting thought. Would something imperfect have spores? It is very localised, covering half a pellet in a collection of eight from the same site.

Yesterday I aired it on a Scottish Fungi Forum in the hope that Roy Watling will comment.

Thanks and regards,

Chris

[mollisia]

Hello Chris,

Originally Posted by chrisjohnson

Hello Andreas

Interesting thought. Would something imperfect have spores?

one would call it conidia, not spores. Conidia are just budding of conidiophores and are not born on basidia or in asci like spores. Conidia usually are occuring in great quantities and often the conidiophores are already gone. So when you just see masses of "spores" and no other definitve elements in a preparation, it is nearly certain that you have something imperfect.

I could imagine that Chris Y. knows what that orange blobs are ....

best regards,
Andreas

[chrisjohnson]

Hello Andreas

My limited experience of conidia is of small, usually spherical, structures. I hadn't appreciated they could be the size and shape of spores.

If it isn't uncommon, perhaps someone will come up with an answer, ... Mal

Thanks and regards,

Chris

[flaxton]

Hi Chris
I have only recently started to spend time with these interesting group and so far I have not come across the orange blobs you talk of so can't help on this occasion sorry.

Mal