The "bootstraps" proudly on display.

At the base of living and dead trees, stumps and roots of broadleaves and conifers

Edible only after thorough cooking; some people are intolerant to it

• ▸ 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.