Fungi, Lichen & Slime Molds 3

I don't know about "the hills are alive with the sound of music", but for sure "the hills are alive with the colour of lichen and wildflowers", ha! Just a photo of a large boulder from my fairly recent archives that I happened to come across, taken at Arethusa Cirque, off Highway 40, Kananaskis, on July 30th. Arethusa Cirque is immediately south of the better-known Ptarmigan Cirque, along Highway 40.

It feels a little strange to see and post a fungi photo, seeing as there have been so few this year. These were found at Rod Handfield's acreage, near Millarville (south west of Calgary) on 13th August.

Bring on the Puffballs - I can never see too many, and especially this year, when fungi in general were so few compared to the previous couple of years. Found these at Brown-Lowery Provincial Park on August 25th.

I always love discovering one of these very small mushrooms in the forest. This was one of the very few fungi I could find on that day, at Brown-Lowery Provincial Park, as this season has been very poor. Not sure if this is the lichen that produces mushroom-like growths. IF it is, then the information below would apply. Once again, I am turning to a great online resource - Doug (dougwaylett). I have looked on several websites for information on Lichenomphalia, but anything I found was far too technical for me to understand. Doug has explained more simply how this little beauty is both a Lichen and a Mushroom. "Lichenomphallia umbellifera 'Lichen Agaric/Mushroom Lichen' is a fungus/lichen that is almost always found growing on a rotting log that is coated with algae. Lichenomphallia is a genus of lichenized Basidomycetes or club fungi which has spores produced on club-shaped basidia. The lichen fungus resembles a mushroom and the algae are concentrated in special tissues or lobes at the base of the fruiting body. This plant is found in both books on Lichens and books on Mushrooms usually under the genus Omphalina." Doug Waylett. Thanks so much, Doug, for confirming my ID! I did wonder if that was algae growing down at the left lower edge. Now, the ground is covered in white, after it snowed overnight : ( It's -8C (17F) just before 11:00 a.m. and snow is forecast for the rest of the day and evening, if it happens. Looks like the days after that should be cold, but sunny. And so winter begins ....

Just a jumble of Polypores, and perhaps "old" ones, growing from a tree in Weaselhead. Not particularly photogenic, but I was happy to see any fungi in the month of June (June 14th) : )

This was a brand new fungus for me when we found it at Votier's Flats in Fish Creek Park, on May 30th. "Half-free morels are easily separated from other morels by cutting them in half, lengthwise. The cap of the half-free morel is attached to the stem half way (more or less; "one-third to two-thirds" might be more accurate), so that a substantial portion hangs free like a skirt. Other true morels have caps that are (again, more or less) completely attached to the stem--while false morels in the genus Verpa have caps that hang completely free, like a thimble placed on a pencil eraser." www.mushroomexpert.com/morchella_half-free.html

Not a particularly photogenic little mushroom - but, hey, you take what you can get (with thanks) when it's been a poor fungi season : ) Found at Brown-Lowery Provincial Park on August 25th.

Two little mushrooms surrounded by moss and horsetails, found at Brown-Lowery Provincial Park on September 17th.

Oops, a little bit too close, I think - it does funny things to my eyes, lol! This was quite a perfect little mushroom, growing at Brown-Lowery Provincial Park on September 17th. I like these little pointed caps.