Highclere Castle
Sun 29 Jul 2012
Peniophora laeta
Photo © Paul Hugill
Field event ID HF1208
OS Grid areas: SU4560
Weather: Showers and sunny spells were forecast and just after lunch we took shelter from a heavy downpour with thunder cracking all around us.
New Records:
New to Hampshire: Cortinarius alnetorum
New to VC12: Puccinia annularis
Report: This was our first visit to Highclere at this time of year and we were hoping for some early summer parkland boletes and russulas which would make a change from our usual end of season waxcap visit. Despite the early summer rain these groups were conspicuous by their abscence here at Highclere just as they have been in the New Forest, that is apart from a solitary Tylopilus felleus (Bitter Bolete) for those wanting to test their palate on bitterness. We started by looking around the parkland trees below the Temple which were generally unproductive and then made our way to the wooded areas to the NE of Duns Mere. Just on the edge of the track on a pile of beech sawdust were some fine specimens of Volvariella gloiocephala (Stubble Rosegill) and shortly afterwards we found Peniophora laeta with its pegs pushing off the bark from Hornbeam twigs - see photo. Once in the woods we came across a plant we did not recognise with a rust on it. (Those with better botanical skills were not with us on this occasion). On our return we establishe the plant as Wood Sage (Teucrium scorodonia) and the rust as Puccinia annularis, a new record for North Hampshire. There were few agarics to be found but we did find the glistening little white Mycena bulbosa on Juncus and Cortinarius alnetorum which proved to be a first for Hampshire.
Species list: Amanita rubescens var. rubescens, Annulohypoxylon multiforme, Biscogniauxia nummularia, Bjerkandera adusta, Bulbillomyces farinosus, Ceriporia reticulata, Ceriporiopsis gilvescens, Clitocybe gibba, Cortinarius alnetorum, Crepidotus cesatii, Cylindrobasidium laeve, Daldinia concentrica, Eichleriella deglubens, Exidia glandulosa, Fuscoporia ferrea, Hapalopilus nidulans, Hymenochaete corrugata, Hymenochaete rubiginosa, Hymenoscyphus calyculus, Hymenoscyphus scutula, Hyphoderma argillaceum, Hyphodontia alutaria, Hypoxylon fragiforme, Hypoxylon fuscum, Lachnum virgineum, Lycoperdon perlatum, Lycoperdon utriforme, Marasmius rotula, Marasmius rotula, Mycena bulbosa, Mycena corynephora, Naucoria striatula, Peniophora laeta, Peniophora quercina, Peniophorella praetermissa, Perenniporia fraxinea, Phanerochaete sordida, Phlebia rufa, Phlebiella sulphurea, Piptoporus betulinus, Pseudoinonotus dryadeus, Puccinia annularis, Rhizodiscina lignyota, Rhopographus filicinus, Schizopora paradoxa, Skeletocutis nivea, Stereum gausapatum, Stereum hirsutum, Stereum rugosum, Trametes versicolor, Tylopilus felleus, Vesiculomyces citrinus, Volvariella gloiocephala, Vuilleminia comedens, Vuilleminia cystidiata, Xylaria hypoxylon