Fungi Dinner or Death? – 11th October 2007   by Henry Scott aged 8

We went to Wilderness Wood and a lady called Anne Yarrow told us all about Fungi.  Fungus is another name for a mushroom or toadstool.  Fungi usually live on dead things though a few live on living things.  Anne told us they were called nature’s dustbin as they clean up all the rotting stuff.

The first things we found were Fairies Bonnets.  These are part of the Ink Cap Family.  We found them on the woodpile. 

Another fungus called Hairy Stereum also grows on dead wood.  We saw a lot of this.  It is Bracket Fungi, which means it sticks out and doesn’t have a stem.  The other thing we saw a lot of was Common Earthballs.  These smelled of rubber.  If you shook them you got loads of spores come out of them like dust.  You can’t eat Common Earthballs or you’ll be sick, but we did find Bay Boletes which are a good mushroom to eat.

Milk Caps and Beechwood Sickener are both part of the Russula family.  Beechwood Sickener is like its name and grows around Beech trees and makes you sick.  It is a pretty red colour. 

Another fungus that is like its name is the Stinkhorn (Phallus Impudicus) which looks like a man’s private parts!  It is very stinky and smells of rotten cheese.  This smell attracts flies.

In the Jelly Disc Family we found Jelly Babies and Black Bulgar.  Black Bulgar grows on fallen Oak trees and Jelly Babies are a greeny-yellow.  Both are rubbery.  There is another family of Fungi that is rubbery called the Jelly Family.  We found Jelly Antlers, which are weeny and bright orange and look a bit like coral.

The Amethyst Deceiver is purple and grows around fallen leaves from Beech Trees and also around Fir trees.  The leaves on a Fir tree don’t fall off because they are Evergreen.  What we saw most of was False Death Caps.  These live in the same places as Amethyst Deceivers.  It’s got a ridge around its stem and smells a bit like potatoes.  You can eat it, but it is not sensible in case it’s a real Death Cap.  A real Death Cap can kill you!