It's a slow time of year for fungi here but I've been excited to find quite a few of these beauties in the last month or so. At first, there were only the large, thick ones with very thick stems, with recesses, holes, arches, vaults, not sure of the correct terms, as in the third pic attached. They're very persistent and tough as well, not only surviving our -7ºC cold snap in early-mid Feb but growing and looking better (pics 2 and 6 are of the same specimen, taken ten days apart, before and after the cold snap). The largest specimen seen so far was about 10 cm across, pic 1. After the cold snap an apparently new kind was seen, smaller, thinner, more crowded, sometimes as many as eight little guys all clustered together. These appear black only from a distance and are actually dark brown when seen closer, but still with black rims. This one is pic 2, one of the largest of this kind, about 4 cm across. These thinner guys have little or no stem, or it is very hard to get at anyway. All are growing on quite old wood, often partly-buried small logs but still fairly firm, ie not yet crumbly-rotten. This is seen clearly at times but other times is just inferred, as the wood is not seen at all, eg three were seen close together in a line radiating from the base of a pine tree, as if on a dead root. I've not been able to ID these guys. Any ideas?
Wow! Great find, photos and description! The size also narrows down the possibilities. Do the outside surfaces have dark hairs and/or a grainy/bumpy texture, or are they relatively smooth? This is looking/sounding more like Sarcosoma than Pseudoplectania. Interesting that they are so variable in appearance. Were they near or in a disturbed or undisturbed area? Thanks, frog
Ah, a few months later ... Sarcosoma seems like the right direction to head in, thanks. The big ones were fairly grainy-textured, the smaller dark brown ones (still with black rims though) were fairly smooth. All were growing by the side of trails, so I guess that would have to qualify as at least partly disturbed. More cups coming, stay tuned! Cheers, Mike
Very nice. I particularly appreciate your attention to lighting, brings out the textures and highlights the fungal body.
