280 days of Urbpandemonium #89

This rainy day, and this mushroom I found on this rainy day, marked the end of my personal drought of interesting mushrooms. Big, bold, orange, and complete with all the field markings of an Amanita*: Warts on the cap, a ring on the stem, a swelling at the base. Or if you want the proper terms, patchy universal veil remnants on the pileus, partial veil remnant in the form of an annulus on the stipe, and a clublike volva. The yellow warts and stem helped me identify it as A. flavoconia** called "yellow patches" in many field guides. The feature that earns it that name has been washed off by the rain in these other specimens--good thing there were a ton of these around in various stages of development. These mushrooms are the reproductive structure of a fungus that weaves the roots of the various trees together as a massive interconnected symbiotic superorganism. It is noted for being especially likely to form mycorhizzae with hemlock, a tree species that in our area is under serious stress from an invasive insect. Astonishingly, considering how large and common and colorful this species is, there is no definitive note on whether it is edible or not. All the guides advise caution, since this genus includes the species of mushrooms that have killed more people than any other.



* "Fungus"

** "Yellow plaster"

280 days of Urbpandemonium #90

The fleshlike lumps in this mossy floor are mushrooms produced by yet another member of the mycorrhizal forest community. Like puffballs, their interior will change into spores that will become airborne when stepped on, rained on, or otherwise disturbed. Unlike puffballs, before this happens their interior is a dense purple cheeselike medium. Also unlike puffballs, these are poisonous to humans and some other mammals (including, in one account, a potbellied pig). These are pigskin earthballs Scleroderma citrinum*--earthballs being a nonsense term invented to disabuse mushroom foragers from thinking these are true puffballs. In my experience, this is one of the more common urban mycorrhizal mushrooms, often emerging (as here) on pathways and even alongside paved areas.


Why a cow nose?

* "Hard skinned lemon (more or less, work with me here)"

Plant ID

As Alexis and I were walking the dogs through the Lost Pond Reservation last week, she stopped and said, hey, what are these flowers? I looked and said that they're kind of wintergreen. Then somewhere in the back of my brain the word "pipsissewa" spoke up. That turns out to be true, but since I didn't have conscious access to the process, I'm not sure I can use it to my future advantage with plant identification.


Pipsissewa is the name given by the Cree, indigenous people of what is now Canada. The plant, Chimaphila umbellata*, has a number of uses including treating urinary disorders and fever and to flavor root beer. Despite having chlorophyll in its leaves to photosynthesize, this plant derives some of its nutrients by parasitizing mycorrhizae, in the same way as strictly parasitic plants like monotrope.

* "Umbellate** winter-lover"

** Umbellate refers to a type of flower growth, ie: in umbels. Umbels are a type of flower wherein a number of flower stalks radiate from a common origin. The most familiar umbellate wildflower is Queen Anne's Lace Dauca carota***.

*** "carrot carrot"

Natural habitat

When one learns of container breeding mosquitoes, one wonders what the mosquitoes did before kiddie pools, bird baths, waterproof tarps, plastic barrels, and other human-made habitat was available. Here's the answer.