Entries by Tristram Brelstaff (3025)

Sunday
Nov032013

Coral Spot Fungus

The asexual fruiting bodies of a Nectria sp, probably a member of the Nectria cinnabarina group of species (see here for a recent account of this group).  They were growing through the bark of a recently felled broad-leaf tree.

The sexual fruiting bodies look like small raspberries:

The two forms do sometimes grow together:

Photos taken above Hutton Village, near Guisborough, North Yorkshire, UK, on 2013-09-12.

Saturday
Nov022013

Soldier Flies

A female Sargus bipunctatus (Diptera: Stratiomyidae). 

The following photo shows the reddish front part of the abdomen which is only present in the females of this species:

And this photo of a different female (taken a week earlier) shows the two white spots (headlamps) between the eyes:

These white spots are present in both males and females.

Photos taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2013-09-18 (the first two) and 2013-09-10 (the last one.

Friday
Nov012013

Yellow-Rimmed Fungus

What I think is dyer's mazegill fungus, Phaeolus schweinitzii.

The underside looks like this:

Photos taken at the top of Bousdale, near Guisborough, North Yorkshire, UK, 2013-09-14.

Thursday
Oct312013

Tachinid Fly

Pales pavida (Diptera: Tachinidae).

Photos taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2013-10-26.

Wednesday
Oct302013

Yellow Disco Fungus

A yellow disco fungus, probably Bisporella sufurina.

I took this specimen home with me and from it obtained the following spores:

With magnification x600 the image width is about 86um so these spores are about 8 x 2.5um.  This matches the range 8-11 x 2-2.5um given for B. sufurina here and is distinctly smaller than the 9-14 x 3-5um given for the commoner Bisporella citrina here .

First photo and specimen taken in the Wilderness, Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2013-10-26.