Spotted these below a lime tree.

[Scottie]

Spotted these yesterday when it was nice and sunny, so I went along today when it was cloudy and damp. The clump that I took the photogragh of was the newest, with older clumps around the root flare. What is it? Is it an Amerilia species?

 

 

 

[Tony Croft aka hamadryad]

Pholiota squarosus, note the basal flare? long term colonisation.

[Fungus]

  hamadryad said:

Pholiota squarrosa, note the basal flare? long term colonisation.

 

Scott,

I have seen old limes (willows, poplars) being windthrown or split in half by P. squarrosa with outer signs of decay such as a basal flare and/or with (first time) panic fruiting of this biotrophic parasitic fungus.

[Tony Croft aka hamadryad]

Im almost certain that clumps of fruit bodies are normal, also these are large fruits and hence healthy and well nourished, with the flare might suggest good reaction to decay. however with lime i would be highly cautious.

 

panic fruits i would expect to be multiple small groups of small malnourished form.

[Fungus]

  hamadryad said:

clumps of fruit bodies are normal ... these are large fruits and hence healthy and well nourished ... panic fruits i would expect to be multiple small groups of small malnourished form ...

 

... or a few clumps of large well nourished fruits producing just as much or even more spores as multiple small groups of small malnourished form, which also can be a way of panic fruiting.

Besides, the volume of well nourished large FB's is coming from just as much or even more decomposition of dead wood as is needed for producing the volume of multiple small groups of malnourished FB's.

Edited November 13, 2011 by Fungus

[Tony Croft aka hamadryad]

  Fungus said:

... or a few clumps of large well nourished fruits producing just as much or even more spores as multiple small groups of small malnourished form, which also can be a way of panic fruiting.

 

wood volumes/convertion rates required to generate large fruits are not avaliable when panic commences though surely?

[Fungus]

  hamadryad said:

wood volumes/convertion rates required to generate large fruits are not avaliable when panic commences though surely?

 

In the case of annual necrotrophic parasitic species, no, but in the case of annual biotrophic parasitic species, such as P. squrrosa and M. giganteus, yes !