Fungi growing in Sphagnum

[RobSutton]

Found this growing in Sphagnum at Malham Tarn:


Spores hyaline, 6.7-8.5µ x 4.5-5.9µ with large droplets:


Basidia four spored with, perhaps, some showing some encrusting with crystals:


When I first saw it I was thinking about Rickenella or Omphalina but it doesn't seem to match anything so far.

Any ideas gratefully received - thanks in advance.

[RobSutton]

The other one I thought of was a small (the whole thing was only c1.5cm across) Hygrocybe - forgot to mention that.

[Ditiola]

Rob
Looking through my photos the closed match is Lichenomphalina umbelifera (syn. Omphalina umbelifera, Omphalina erictorum and Gerronea erictorum), not sure if all the micro features fit, but the spore look the same shape.

Peter

[SheffieldLass]

It looks to me like Lichenomphalia umbellifera, formerly Omphalina erictorum. Your spores are a tad on the small size but not unduly so.

Melanie

Just pipped to the post!

[RobSutton]

Thanks Peter and Melanie - I must admit Lichenomphalina (Omphalina) umbelifera had been my first idea but I made the mistake of looking for the algal cells at the bottom of the stipe and couldn't see any and then the gills didn't look decurrent enough, the stipe wasn't brown at the top and then the spores were slightly small as well and I'd persuaded myself it must be something else!

There was lots of other good stuff in the Sphagnum - just about the only place where I'm finding many fungi at all at the moment. There was the fairly ubiquitous Lactarius tabidus in Sphagnum under Birch:


an interesting Hypholoma I keyed out as H.elongatum:

just a shame it was such a slug eaten specimen.

A couple of Galerina - this I think is G.paludosa:


with cystidia:


and spores:


This one I think is Galerina tibiicystis:


with elongate, capitate cystidia:


and rather similar ones throughout the stem:


and the spores matched too, being slightly shorter and narrower than in G.paludosa and with a slightly verrucose appearance:


I hope I've managed to get these last two correct - any alternative suggestions would be welcomed.

[SheffieldLass]

I found Galerina paludosa in Sphagnum, and Hypholoma udum in slightly drier moorland on Saturday.

I've just checked my micro images of G paludosa with yours and they are a very good match, and yours looks very like mine macroscopically, so either we are both right or both wrong ...

It took me a while to decide whether the Hypholoma was H udum or H myosotis. I was just in the middle of posting it on WAB, then thought to check Fungi of Switzerland, where it was obvious ... H udum has warty spores, which mine had, and had made me think Galerina to start off with, though the abundant chrysocystidia scotched that idea ... The spores didn't seem at all purplish, which H udum are supposed to be, according to Funga Nordica, whilst H myosotis are not, and the cap was so dry that I couldn't decide whether when moist it would be merely greasy or viscid. All other features except the spores wartiness/smoothness are very similar for the two. So I was glad to discover that difference, which clinched it very decisively.

Melanie

[RobSutton]

Originally Posted by SheffieldLass

... The spores didn't seem at all purplish, which H udum are supposed to be, according to Funga Nordica, whilst H myosotis are not, and the cap was so dry that I couldn't decide whether when moist it would be merely greasy or viscid. All other features except the spores wartiness/smoothness are very similar for the two. So I was glad to discover that difference, which clinched it very decisively.

Melanie

I find that couplet in Fungi Nordica very difficult:

Cap viscid when moist, shiny when dry; gills brown without purplish tinge ...7
Cap greasy when moist; gills at maturity with or without a violet or purplish tinge ...8

What exactly is the difference between viscid and greasy? and anything to with colour can be very subjective unless you are very familiar with the group.

I'll have to have another look at the Hypholomas on my patch, I suspect there may be more than one species there - I did find a very tatty, slug eaten, specimen that had big spores:



I suspect this may be H.myosotis.

[SheffieldLass]

Interesting that these brownish Hypholoma are popping up now.

Mine was the first of that group I've seen, and it took me a little while to recognise that they were Hypholoma ... Sulphur Tuft does sort of dominate the image one has of Hypholoma. Mine was also tatty and slug eaten, and rather dried up. Maybe the drought is bringing them up as they are panicking because the bogs are getting less bog-like.

I think I might go and do a bit of bog trotting, see what else is out there. (Must get some light coloured gaiters first though to keep the ticks off me ... if anyone is heading into the North York Moors it is bad out there right now for ticks, and it is apparently a Lymes hotspot, which is not good news. I've had two on me, and that was with being very careful too, legs fully covered, checking my trousers etc).

Melanie

[RobSutton]

I've been back to look at the Hypholoma species again and think I have both H.udum and H.myosotis present on the site (part of Malham Tarn NNR).

These first two are, I think Hypholoma udum:
Sample 1

Spores:


Sample 2

Spores:


Whilst this I think is Hypholoma myosotis:

Spores:


There seems to be a difference in the shape of the spores, both species have large spores but those of H.myosotis seem "fuller" with a lower length to width ratio and also seem paler. There also seem to be differences in gill colour and whether the cap is hygrophanous or not which are consistent with descriptions of the two species.

[Andy Overall]

Hi Rob,

Out of interest. How did you manage to get your graticule graph super imposed over the image? Is it tricky to accomplish? Which microscope and camera are you using?

Thanks

Andy