╔══ Sightings from 14 September 202614 sightings
speciesArmillaria mellea
locationPflegersee
habitatAt the base of living and dead trees, stumps and roots of broadleaves and conifers
edibilityEdible only after thorough cooking; some people are intolerant to it
├─ Key Features
- │ ▸ Honey-coloured to olive-brown caps growing in dense clusters at the base of trees
- │ ▸ White to cream decurrent gills
- │ ▸ Zigzag ring or ring zone on the upper stem
- │ ▸ Dark, dense scales in the middle of the cap
└─ A weakly parasitic fungus whose black, bootlace-like rhizomorphs spread through the soil and can kill trees — the mycelium of a single colony can rank among the largest living organisms on Earth.
└─ There were many more clusters of these along this path than recorded here.
speciesArmillaria mellea
locationPflegersee
habitatAt the base of living and dead trees, stumps and roots of broadleaves and conifers
edibilityEdible only after thorough cooking; some people are intolerant to it
├─ Key Features
- │ ▸ Honey-coloured to olive-brown caps growing in dense clusters at the base of trees
- │ ▸ White to cream decurrent gills
- │ ▸ Zigzag ring or ring zone on the upper stem
- │ ▸ Dark, dense scales in the middle of the cap
└─ A weakly parasitic fungus whose black, bootlace-like rhizomorphs spread through the soil and can kill trees — the mycelium of a single colony can rank among the largest living organisms on Earth.
speciesArmillaria mellea
locationPflegersee
habitatAt the base of living and dead trees, stumps and roots of broadleaves and conifers
edibilityEdible only after thorough cooking; some people are intolerant to it
├─ Key Features
- │ ▸ Honey-coloured to olive-brown caps growing in dense clusters at the base of trees
- │ ▸ White to cream decurrent gills
- │ ▸ Zigzag ring or ring zone on the upper stem
- │ ▸ Dark, dense scales in the middle of the cap
└─ A weakly parasitic fungus whose black, bootlace-like rhizomorphs spread through the soil and can kill trees — the mycelium of a single colony can rank among the largest living organisms on Earth.
speciesCalocera cornea
locationPflegersee
habitatDamp dead wood of broadleaved trees, especially beech and oak
edibilityInedible — too small and insignificant
├─ Key Features
- │ ▸ Tiny, bright yellow, awl- to club-shaped fruit bodies only a few mm tall
- │ ▸ Gelatinous to waxy texture, glossy and slightly sticky when moist
- │ ▸ Unbranched or sparingly branched tips
- │ ▸ Grows in dense clusters on damp decaying wood
└─ The commonest of the yellow stagshorn fungi; the tiny gelatinous clubs are easily overlooked on damp logs.
speciesClavulina coralloides
locationPflegersee
habitatOn the ground in coniferous and broadleaf forest, in litter and moss
edibilityEdible but of little culinary value
├─ Key Features
- │ ▸ Cream-white to greyish, coral-like branched fruit body
- │ ▸ Branches end in comb-like crests or pointed tips
- │ ▸ No distinct stem; grows directly from needle and leaf litter, often in tufts
- │ ▸ Turns greyish with age or in dry weather
speciesCollybia phyllophila
locationPflegersee
habitatOn leaf and needle litter in broadleaf and coniferous forest
edibilityPoisonous — suspected of causing the muscarine syndrome; to be avoided in any case because of the risk of confusion
├─ Key Features
- │ ▸ Lead-white cap with a matt, frosted (varnished) surface, later with brownish stains
- │ ▸ Decurrent, whitish to cream gills
- │ ▸ White, fibrous, spongy stem
- │ ▸ Grows in groups, often in fairy rings, in litter-rich forest
└─ The commonest of the white, frosted clitocybes — a group that field guides recommend collectors avoid entirely.
speciesCordyceps militaris
locationPflegersee
habitatMossy forest floor, growing on buried insect pupae
edibilityNot edible
├─ Key Features
- │ ▸ Bright orange, club-shaped fruiting bodies (stromata) rising from the ground, often in clusters
- │ ▸ The smooth, slightly swollen head is covered with tiny, embedded flask-shaped perithecia
- │ ▸ Grows from the buried pupae of moths and butterflies, which the fungus has infected and killed
- │ ▸ Emerges from mossy soil and forest litter during the humid autumn months
└─ Rich in cordycepin; widely cultivated as a medicinal supplement. Lifting the moss aside reveals the insect that the mushroom is feeding on.
└─ Moving the moss aside, it is possible to see the insect which was infected and whose body is now feeding the mushroom.
speciesGuepinia helvelloides
locationPflegersee
habitatOn soil in damp places: paths, ditches, stream banks, shady slopes
edibilityEdible, very little flavour
├─ Key Features
- │ ▸ Salmon- to flesh-pink, funnel- or trumpet-shaped gelatinous fruit body
- │ ▸ Lobed, wavy, often rolled-back margin
- │ ▸ Inner surface with fine veins or grooves
- │ ▸ With age, a whitish spore powder coats the outside
└─ Also known as salmon salad; the glistening salmon-pink funnels are unmistakable in damp woodland.
speciesLactarius deterrimus
locationPflegersee
habitatUnder spruce (Picea), more rarely in mixed forest, from lowland to subalpine
edibilityEdible
├─ Key Features
- │ ▸ Orange to carrot-red cap with faint concentric zones, greening with age
- │ ▸ Orange, later greenish milk that stains weakly orange on exposure
- │ ▸ Gills bruise green where damaged
- │ ▸ Stem without distinct pits; latex mild to slightly bitter, never hot
speciesLactarius deterrimus
locationPflegersee
habitatUnder spruce (Picea), more rarely in mixed forest, from lowland to subalpine
edibilityEdible
├─ Key Features
- │ ▸ Orange to carrot-red cap with faint concentric zones, greening with age
- │ ▸ Orange, later greenish milk that stains weakly orange on exposure
- │ ▸ Gills bruise green where damaged
- │ ▸ Stem without distinct pits; latex mild to slightly bitter, never hot
speciesLactarius deterrimus
locationPflegersee
habitatUnder spruce (Picea), more rarely in mixed forest, from lowland to subalpine
edibilityEdible
├─ Key Features
- │ ▸ Orange to carrot-red cap with faint concentric zones, greening with age
- │ ▸ Orange, later greenish milk that stains weakly orange on exposure
- │ ▸ Gills bruise green where damaged
- │ ▸ Stem without distinct pits; latex mild to slightly bitter, never hot
speciesMucidula mucida
locationPflegersee
habitatOn dead and dying branches and trunks of beech, occasionally oak
edibilityEdible after thorough cleaning, but of little culinary value because of the slimy cap
├─ Key Features
- │ ▸ Porcelain-white, shiny, slimy cap, grey-brown towards the centre
- │ ▸ Wide, distant, white gills
- │ ▸ Slender white stem with a flimsy ring that soon comes off
- │ ▸ Grows in clusters on dead and dying beech wood
speciesPseudohydnum gelatinosum
locationPflegersee
habitatOn strongly decayed, damp conifer stumps (spruce, pine); rarely on hardwood
edibilityEdible but of no culinary value
├─ Key Features
- │ ▸ Gelatinous, tongue- to fan-shaped fruit body
- │ ▸ Underside covered with soft, hanging teeth (spines)
- │ ▸ Translucent whitish to grey-brown, jelly-firm flesh
- │ ▸ Short lateral stem, sometimes missing entirely
└─ Looks like a jelly fungus but bears soft spines like a hedgehog fungus — hence the name. Edible, though it tastes of almost nothing.
speciesPseudohydnum gelatinosum
locationPflegersee
habitatOn strongly decayed, damp conifer stumps (spruce, pine); rarely on hardwood
edibilityEdible but of no culinary value
├─ Key Features
- │ ▸ Gelatinous, tongue- to fan-shaped fruit body
- │ ▸ Underside covered with soft, hanging teeth (spines)
- │ ▸ Translucent whitish to grey-brown, jelly-firm flesh
- │ ▸ Short lateral stem, sometimes missing entirely
└─ Looks like a jelly fungus but bears soft spines like a hedgehog fungus — hence the name. Edible, though it tastes of almost nothing.