Slime Mold

A dark red slime mould, probably Arcyria denudata.  Arcyria incarnata is similar but the sporangia are much fuzzier when they have burst.

I took a specimen home with me:

Under the microscope the spores are about 6 x 5.5um (magnification x600, field width 86um):

The capillitium is rough and thick and has loops (also magnification x600, field width 86um):

First photo and specimen taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2013-12-24.

Black Mushrooms

What I think are deer mushrooms, Pluteus cervinus, growing on wood chips.  The caps of this species are often a lighter brown colour.  The gills look like this:

I took a specimen home with me but was unable to get any spores from it.  However, under the microscope the gill surfaces showed the large protuding horned cystidia that are characteristic of P. cervinus (magnification x150, field width about 344um):

A close view of one cystidium (magnification x600, field width about 86um):

First 2 photos and specimen taken in the Wilderness, Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2013-11-10.

Another Toothed Crust Fungus

Another toothed crust fungus, this time probably Radulomyces molaris (= Basidioradula molare), again probably on a fallen oak branch.

I took this specimen:

And the specimen yielded these spores (magnification x600, field width 86um):

These spores are about 9 x 6um which is distinctly fatter than those of Basidioradulum radula found here, and which agrees well with the ranges of about 8-12 x 6-8um often quoted for R. molaris.

First photo and specimen taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2013-12-24.

Toothed Crust Fungus

A toothed crust fungus, probably Basidioradulum radula, growing on the fallen branch of a broad leaf tree, probably oak.

I took the following specimen back home with me:

This yielded the following spores (magnification x600, field width about 86um):

These spores are about 7.5 x 2.5um which is a little smaller than the ranges of about 8-12 x 3-3.5um usually quoted for B. radula.

First photo and specimen taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2013-12-24.

Jelly Fungus

What I think is a pale form of Tremella mesenterica.  It was growing on a branch of an ash tree (Fraxinus excelsior).

I took the following specimen:

The specimen yielded the following spores (magnification x600, field width 86um):

Quite a few of the spores were starting to sprout hyphae which probably the reason for their tear-drop shape.  Their size is about 17 x 7.5um which is near the top end of the range (8.0-) 10.0-16.0 (-18.0) x 6.0-9.5 (-12.0) um given for Tremella mesenterica on this page at MycoBank.  The fact that the spores are sprouting hyphae probably explains why they are unusually long.

Other similar species of jelly fungus have spores that are either much smaller or else much more allantoid (sausage-shaped).

First photo and specimen taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading, UK, on 2013-12-25.