Toadstool Spotting

Posted on by Louise Bunting

On day 127 of 365 Days Wild I decided to go on a fungi hunt in the meadow and little woodland area beside the stream. It was a very successful hunt. Everywhere was very damp after storm Alex’s downpours, and the musty scents of rotting plant matter clung heavily to the air. The clouds broke for a while, allowing the sun to illuminate the space. It was only for a while, however. Half of these pictures were taken after the rain had started to fall again.

I’ve made an attempt to identify the fungi that I found, but unfortunately I’ve had little success. There are over 15,000 fungus species in the UK alone and many of them look incredibly similar to one another. A few of the pictures below have a name in their caption box, others have a vague idea of the family that they might belong to, and yet others have been left blank. I do intend to continue trying to identify them, so these captions might be updated at some point, but that might take a while. The only one I’m positive on is the lovely little Fly Agaric (Amanita muscaria), which is such a wonderfully distinctive toadstool. If anyone recognises any of the other species, please do let me know!

That’s all for today. Have you spotted any interesting fungi while out and about recently?

11 thoughts on “Toadstool Spotting”

  1. It’s obviously all the fungi that get to you. (I did spot a magic mushroom!) You now have two 123’s and two 125’s. I do love a BOGOF offer but I’m easily confused these days!

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    1. Thank you for spotting that! It’s all fixed now. I’m actually on day 127, it seems. My getting into a tangle with my day count isn’t a surprise to anyone who knows me. Numbers and I just don’t get on. I’ve actually been considering starting a written diary again to help me keep track of where I’m up to. Obviously, keeping track through my blog isn’t working very well!

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  2. still much too hot and dry where i live for any fungi.

    there MUST be an app for your phone to help you identify the mushrooms or a good book????

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    1. I’ve tried a few different apps now but with little success. All of the possible matches they show don’t match the toadstools I’ve found at all! I’ve currently got my eye on a pocket guidebook that I’m considering buying, but until then I’ll continue to the use Naturespot website, which gives me some ideas even if I can’t narrow it down to a single ID. Thanks for visiting, Buddy. 😊

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  3. What a fantastic selection. The fly Agaric is certainly the most striking, but they are all unique. I’m no good at identifying, rely on INaturalist and hope experts will see my pics and help. 😊

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    1. We’ve had a really good range of toadstools popping up around here so far this year. I’m getting better at identifying them, but I do still struggle. I’ve tried a couple of different apps now with little success. The suggestions they give I already know are wrong! The First-Nature website is proving to be a very useful resource and I’ve just joined a Facebook page that I hope will have a few experts who can help! Thanks for reading and commenting, Shazza. 😁

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  5. Lovely photos. The last ones remind me of jellyfish. I’ve heard that the I Naturalist app is quite good for fungi identification.

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    1. Thanks! I’m glad you like them. There has been so much fungi about this year! I’ve heard good thing from a few people now about the INaturalist app. I might have to try it out – if I can make some space on my phone! 🍄🍄🍄

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