Beautiful Eyelashes

[RobSutton]

I've always been a sucker for beautiful eyes and eyelashes and here's one that I could really fall for (I think it's worth looking at full size - just two clicks away):



I'm pretty sure it's Scutellinia scutellata on the basis of the long hairs and weakly ornamented spores:


It's not the best spore photograph but even directly under the microscope there was nothing really obvious in any of the spores in terms of ornamentation. The only thing I wasn't sure about was the habitat, it wasn't obviously on rotting wood but there could easily have been well rotted wood fragments from the adjacent boardwalk.

[cowshill]

Thanks, Rob, for an absolutely stunning photo. And also for sending me, once again, off to Google to learn about another new and wonderful fungus!

- Jim

[SheffieldLass]

Rob

Great photo. And as I notice that you are often finding the same range of fungi that I'm finding, that as I've not found this one yet, maybe I'll be lucky too and find this one in a day or two .....

Melanie

[NickCantle]

Originally Posted by cowshill

Thanks, Rob, for an absolutely stunning photo. And also for sending me, once again, off to Google to learn about another new and wonderful fungus!

- Jim

That's the way I resource Jim, it's extremely effective. I can have whole evening in which I become uncontrollably enthralled in the web, just learning things! I love it.

[Chris Yeates]

Originally Posted by RobSutton

I've always been a sucker for beautiful eyes and eyelashes and here's one that I could really fall for (I think it's worth looking at full size - just two clicks away):



I'm pretty sure it's Scutellinia scutellata on the basis of the long hairs and weakly ornamented spores:


It's not the best spore photograph but even directly under the microscope there was nothing really obvious in any of the spores in terms of ornamentation. The only thing I wasn't sure about was the habitat, it wasn't obviously on rotting wood but there could easily have been well rotted wood fragments from the adjacent boardwalk.

hi Rob

you know me and my scepticism about Scutellinia ident's . . . . reminding everybody that there are around 22 British species . . . . not just the standard one - scutellata - that appears in a lot of the popular books . . . .

but I think this one is S. scutellata; if you're doing the microscopy then checking how the marginal hairs "root" can be useful

there is a good, on-line, multi-access key - I'll post the link tomorrow when I have time to chase it down

bet today (er - yesterday) was great up at Malham? God's own Country . . .

cheers

Chris

[RobSutton]

Thanks Chris - I must admit I struggle with a lack of literature for genera like this. I'm using the key in Ellis and Ellis which covers a few of the 22 species so links to any other resources would really help.

I'm having similar problems with a couple of Otidia specimens at the moment as well. They look very different macroscopically but microscopically very similar and the the key, again in Ellis and Ellis, gives me an answer which fits uncomfortably between two species, closer to one than the other but not a perfect fit (spore length/width ratio is the problem). I suspect, again, that there are more species than they give in their book so don't have a huge confidence in my conclusion.

ps Malham Tarn was gorgeous yesterday but I spent most of the day inside in meetings rather than being out and about.

[RobSutton]

Originally Posted by cowshill

Thanks, Rob, for an absolutely stunning photo. And also for sending me, once again, off to Google to learn about another new and wonderful fungus!

- Jim

Thanks Jim - some of these little jobs are stunningly beautiful in close up and I often end up chasing things off on the internet as the result of spotting something.

Originally Posted by SheffieldLass

Rob

Great photo. And as I notice that you are often finding the same range of fungi that I'm finding, that as I've not found this one yet, maybe I'll be lucky too and find this one in a day or two .....

Melanie

Good luck - I only ever spot one or two a year, it's often as the result of being on my hands and knees looking at something else - at the moment it's usually an Inocybe or an Entoloma and I'm wondering whether I dare start this journey into the dark side of mycology when I spot something like this which thankfully distracts me. Then I find that there are pitfalls with this group as well but by the time I've finished I've learnt quite a lot.