Stockbridge Down
Sun 20 May 2012
Puccinia coronata
Photo © Paul Hugill
Field event ID HF1204
OS Grid areas: SU3834 SU3835 SU3734 SU3735
Weather: A warm dry day although there had been some rain in the preceding week.
Report: Stockbridge Down has always required careful searching to find fungi and this day was no different. The grassland produced some puffballs and LBJs some of which were identified but some escaped identification in part due to lack of microscope time in the days after the foray. Once again we failed to find St George's mushroom Calocybe gambosa which we felt should be growing there. There was a solitary Hygrocybe psittacina Parrot Waxcap duly photographed by Paul. Much discussion was generated both on the day and subsequently by a fruitbody which was labelled a 'simocybe' in the field. The eventual decision was Simocybe centuculus. After finding the aecidial stage of Gymnoporangium clavariiforme on hawthorn leaves Stuart was keen to find the more spectacular form on juniper, its alternate host, but despite extensive searching it was not to be found on this occasion.
Species list: Agrocybe praecox, Anthracobia macrocystis, Auricularia auricula-judae, Bovista plumbea, Calloria neglecta, Daldinia concentrica, Fuscoporia ferrea, Gliophorus psittacinus, Gymnosporangium clavariiforme, Hypholoma fasciculare, Leptosphaeria acuta, Melanoleuca polioleuca, Nemania serpens var. serpens, Panaeolina foenisecii, Phylloporia ribis, Puccinia coronata, Simocybe centunculus, Skeletocutis nivea, Stereum rugosum, Trametes versicolor, Vuilleminia comedens