A disco and a slime mould (perhaps)

[Gerel]

Hi all, more ID queries I'm afraid.

Two I found yesterday.

This piece of wood (no idea about species, sorry), had been deposited on the river bank by floodwater.



Colour of the fungi varied on different parts of the stick from a pale grey to the yellowish ones shown to almost black.

This was growing in the damp between two larch planks, I thought it may be Leocarpus fragilis.



Cheers

Steve

[Chris Yeates]

hi

I suspect 2 is a Dacrymyces - and D. stillatus is the usual suspect . . . you wouldn't normally be getting a slime-mould 'fruiting' under these conditions

1 is another matter: I think it is probably a Vibrissea species - at one point these unstalked fungi would have been placed in Apostemidium, but the two genera appear to have been 'lumped' together; these discomycetes specialise in this sort of sodden habitat, but you really need to get them under a microscope for an ID to species level . . . nice find , it shows how it is always worth searching specialised habitats

cheers

Chris

[mollisia]

Hallo Steve,

so you have been in my most preferred habitat to search for fungi! I'm gathering collections from fungi living submerged in floating clear water since many years and there are still new things to find!
Your no. 1 is - as Chris correctly sais - a Vibrissea, formerly classifies in an own genus Apostemidium. In those times only the well-stalked Vibrissea truncorum was in Vibrissea and Apostemidium has been separated because of sitting, cushion-like apothecia. But there are speices which are intermediate and there is no other character to differenciate, so it is obviousely that these two genera were united.
These Vibrissea species all have very long an thin spores, they measure appr. 200 x 2 µm! When you take the apothecia out of the water, they will soon beginn to spread their spores, which can be seen without lens as minute silvery "hairs" drifting through the air. If you collect those, put them in a dark box and at home open the box under a lamp and you will see the spores shooting around!
Your foto very probably shown Vibrissea flavovirens, which is in my area the most common and the only which has clearly yellowgreen colour. This is not very distinct in your species, so there remains a certain uncertainty. As Chris sais, it deserves microscopy.

The 2nd foto shown an imperfect fungus, but I have no idea to what it belongs. It is no Dacrymyces.

I will start a new thread about submerged ascos, may be it is of interest.

best regards,
Andreas

[Gerel]

Many thanks Chris and Andreas,

I've collected a sample of the stick with some water to keep it wet. I'll have a go at seeing the spores as Andreas suggests. Unfortunately I won't have the funds for a decent microscope for a while yet so it will have to stay as Vibrissea sp. for the time being .

regards

Steve