fungi

Ringless Honey Mushroom

Ringless Honey Mushroom (Desarmillaria caespitosa)
The Ringless Honey Mushroom is a fascinating fungus commonly found in clusters at the bases of trees, stumps, and buried wood, particularly in urban yards and near oaks. Despite appearing to sprout from the ground, this mushroom always grows from dead wood, making it a decomposer critical to nutrient recycling in forest ecosystems.
Identification Features
Cap: Honey-colored, ranging from yellow-brown to reddish-brown, with a convex shape that flattens and develops an uplifted margin as it ages. The cap’s surface is dry and adorned with cottony, reddish-brown scales.
Gills: Whitish, spaced distantly, and may stain pinkish or brownish. The gills slightly descend where they attach to the stalk.
Stalk: Thick and tapering toward the base, off-white to brownish, and fibrous in texture. Stalks often grow fused together at their bases.
Spore Print: White, with spores that are elliptical, smooth, and colorless when viewed under magnification.
Growth and Ecology
Season: September to November.
Habitat: Found in clusters, often in large numbers, growing on dead wood, including stumps, roots, or buried logs. The mushroom plays a vital role in decomposing dead organic material.
Life Cycle: The above-ground mushroom is the fruiting body of a mycelium, a vast underground network of fungal filaments. When ready to reproduce, the mycelium produces mushrooms that release spores into the environment, starting new fungal colonies. The mycelium spreads through the soil to find new dead wood to colonize.
Role in the Ecosystem
As decomposers, Ringless Honey Mushrooms recycle nutrients by breaking down dead wood. Their fruiting bodies are a food source for insects and arthropods, which in turn support predators like birds, salamanders, and toads. When the mushrooms deteriorate, their remains contribute further to the ecosystem’s nutrient cycle.
The Ringless Honey Mushroom showcases the interconnectedness of organisms within ecosystems, transforming lifeless wood into sustenance for countless species and enriching the soil for future plant growth.
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Stinkhorn

The Stinkhorn, a fungus commonly found in Florida backyards and wooded areas where there is decomposing matter, is an unusual specimen, to say the least. This mushroom, which is in the same family as puffballs, is a non-poisonous, stinky fruiting body that is reported to smell like carrion and sewage. Typically, the stinkhorn is seen in its fruiting body stage, developing an elongated shape (consider the stinkhorn’s genus, Phallus.) and colors a shade of green and bright red. There are several types of stinkhorn found in Florida, but the photos below are of the Columned Stinkhorn.
Despite the stinkhorn’s grotesque appearance and stench, the fungus plays an incredibly important role in Florida ecosystems. Just as bees use flowers for nectar and spread pollen, the stinkhorn uses flies and other insects to spread its spores. The stinkhorn develops a section upon the top of the fruiting body in which it contains its stinky mass of spores. The offensive stench attracts all sorts of insects which in turn come to feast on the gleba (the spore mass). Unknowingly, the insects now carry the spores within them, which they then spread to different areas via their excrement. A fascinating example of symbiosis in our very own backyards.
Though the stinkhorn may smell disgusting, the fungi are instrumental in the function of a healthy ecosystem and should be left alone to live out its short life cycle. Moreover, even if one wishes to remove a fungus from their yard, the mycelium
below the fruiting body is extensive and highly resilient to fungicides, making their complete eradication impossible. Best to leave the little stinkhorn to its important work as a decomposer.
Photo Credit: Aymee Laurain
Author: Sarina Pennington
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