On the 20th of October I attended a Fungus foray at Raw Nook NR lead by the very knowledgeable Kat Woolley of the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust. This follows on from last years successful fungus survey by Kat on the 22/10/19.
Sadly due to Covid 19 restriction only 6 people could attend and social distancing was in place. The main aim of the meeting was to build a better understanding of the species that inhabit the reserve and to increase the species list which stood at 48 species, so there was no pressure of Kat..ha..ha
We first headed for the dense Hazel and Willow scrub area in the middle of the meadow.
It was suppose to be a quick look but we kept Kat that busy with the interesting finds….we were in there a good hour!
One of the more strange looking fungi found in this area is the White Saddle Helvella crispa which was also found last year in the same location.
Also found was the delightfully name Lemon Disco – Bisporella citrina fungi…
Incidentally Sarah Goldsmith YWT who also attended has brought out an excellent ” Virtual fungus foray” https://www.facebook.com/groups/BUD.Bradford/ with a map…So you too can find and enjoy the Fungus Foray!
Walking on to the flooded area on the left we found hardly any fungi however, Kat pointed out on a nearby Willow a lovely Blushing Bracket Daedaleopsis confragosa. One of my favorite members of the Bracket family.
It was soon time for a well earned rest….Well for Kat anyway… so it was a quick stop for lunch.
As we continued more and more new species were found including the Leaf Parachute Marasmius epiphyllus, Common Rustgill Gymnopilus penetrans and the worryingly name Poisonpie Hebeloma crustuliniforme.
We eventually arrived at the top of the reserve by the large heather patch ( Near the bridge. ) It wasn’t long before Kat let out a ” Oh! brilliant ” as she had identifield not one Waxcap fungi species but three! Which is excellent news for this urban reserve.
The three species were the Heath, Meadow and Vermilion waxcap.
Another new species found just by the Waxcaps was the lovely Yellow Club – Clavulinopsis helvola
So as we came to the end of the foray it was time to total up Kat’s finds. An excellent 18 new species were added to our list of 48 fungi species for the reserve.
However, there was one species that summed up the fungi walk for me, the privilege to witness the birth of an emerging fungi.
Special thanks to Sarah Goldsmith for arranging the foray and an even bigger thank you to Kat Woolley for all her patience and knowledge.
