Fungi Friday 🍄

I’ve been in London through most of this week’s heatwave, with some time spent in woodland. The ground is bone dry and there are no typical mushrooms sprouting.

Earthballs are not typical mushrooms, but are definitely one of the most recognisable or often encountered species of fungi.

At the bottom of this oak tree I spotted two fruiting bodies. One had been squashed (there are a lot of visitors here) and another stood a little like it may have a stipe holding it up. I picked the squashed one and found that it was an earthball, without a typical stipe.

They look like some kind of woodland brain pulled from its mooring.

I’m unsure of the species just yet but expect it’s scaly earthball, if not common.

Thanks for reading.