In the first one, at the right upper corner are some greyish spheres. Are these connected with the Chlorociboria aeruginascens - Green Wood Cup ? In the second one, there is an 8 legged guy. Fleas & lice have only 6 legs. So it can only be tick or mite. Do tick or mite feed on the fungus or micro organism on the fungus ?
Not sure about either; - greyish spheres could be immature Mollisia sp. but there are many "discomycete" tiny cup fungi in these habitats, need specimen in hand for their ID - many insects and bugs in the loose sense use fungi for food, shelter, mating spots, egg depositing spots and so on. Invertebrate-fungal relationships is a huge topic. I often see shiny black round fungus beetles and members of many clades of Collembola, the springtails, around fruiting bodies.
David Wong told me it's hazardous to health looking around for fungi. He need to take a day off for his backache after a day's exploration. To this must add the hazard of being bitten and recipient of potential pathogens. I always wear long trousers, long socks, plus long sleeve shirts, just in case.....
Ouch - yes that does not sound fun! Maybe long sleeves/pants combined with lighter weight total of camera equipment? :-)
