Crust Fungus

A purplish-grey crust fungus, probably Peniophora quercina, growing on a fallen oak twig.

I took this twig home with me and, with an elastic band, strapped a microscope slide over the fungus to catch any spores it released. I then placed it slide downwards in a small plastic tub, added a couple of drops of water to keep it damp, and left it sealed overnight.  On the following day there was a faint reddish film of spores on the slide.  I added a drop of water and then a cover-slip.  The  microscope revealed the spores to be shaped like slightly bent sausages, which is consistent with the 'curved cylindric, 8-12 x 3-4um' given for the spores of P. quercina.  Here they are at x600 magnification:

The original specimen was taken from Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2012-12-06.

Tephritid Flies

From back in late spring: rivalry between two male Tephritis neesii (Diptera: Tephritidae).

For the successful one the outcome is mating with a female:

Photos taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2012-05-30.

Spindle Tree

The fruits of Euonymus europaeus, the spindle tree or, more accurately, spindle bush.  I come across several of these distinctive bushes on my walks, both round Whiteknights Park and Chazey Wood, but it was only last week that I took the trouble to identify them.  I had assumed that they were a foreign species that had escaped from gardens but they are actually native to Britain.

This is what the leaves look like:

Photos taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2012-10-14.

White Moth

From back in May: the small white moth Elachista argentella (Lepidoptera: Elachistidae).

Photo taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2012-05-18.

Holm Oak

A large holm oak, Quercus ilex, on the bank of the large lake.

The leaves are evergreen and have small spines (indeed the names 'holm' and 'ilex' both derive from the leaves' similarity to holly):

And the bark looks like this:

Photos taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2012-12-03.