A Feast of Fungi

Fly Agaric

A few weeks ago I posted an article about the Autumn spectacle of Fungi. A couple of days ago I received the picture attached to this article. This was sent to me by Rachel Coney who had spotted all these and some others in her walks around Hankelow. It shows what a feast for the eyes, although in some case certainly not for the stomach, this seasonal offering can be. We are now in the peak time for Autumn fruiting fungi, before the first frosts arrive. The collage, Rachel has made, shows the, often overlooked, weird, the wonderful and the beautiful sides of fungi .

There are 150,000 known species in the world, of which 15000 are known in the UK. Scientists suspect there are as many as 2 million species worldwide. This makes identification rather tricky and today the experts use DNA.

Hankelow Fungi

So here is my guess as to those in the picture using Collins Fungi Guide and the Obsidentify identification app.

Top row (R to l): Fly Agaric (Amanita muscaria), Copinopsis (?), Saggy Inkcap/ Lawyer Wig (Caprinus comatus); Middle Row: Pleated Incap (Parasola plicatilis), Fly Agaric (Amanita muscaria), Stubble Rosegill (Volvariella gloiacephala); Bottom Row: Brown Rollrim (Paxilus involutus), Hairy Parachute (Crinipallus scabella), Glistening Inkcap (Copinellus micaceus).

Unless, of course, you know better!