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Fly agaric 2

Fly agaric

The white flecks or warts on the cap of this toadstool are the remnants of a veil which surrounds the mushroom as it pushes up through the soil.

Rain will wash them off, leaving a pure red cap, as here. The yellow marking near the apex is where something has begun to nibble at the fungus.

Further rain, especially heavy rain, will also begin to leach away the bright red colour, leaving oranges or yellows. Such can be seen in this rather bedraggled specimen.

Fly agaric

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David

Cow parsley seeds

Cow parslip seeds

Most of the seeds of this plant have now dried and been scattered.

Other nearby hogweeds are still showing flowers, although they are getting rather straggly

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David

Orange peel fungus

Orange peel fungus

In shape, it looks like a tiny, squashed cup, without any visible stem.
Grows on open soil under trees.

These are new specimens. Very soon, they become paler on the outer surface, and more and more resemble fragments of discarded orange peel to a casual glance – a process which has gone a little further along in the specimens below.

Orange peel fungus

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David

Fly agaric

Fly agaric

The classic toadstool of fairy story illustrators.

Don’t try at home to test out its hallucinogenic properties: the toxic chemicals which cause this effect are as likely to give some very unpleasant, and just possibly fatal, symptoms.

In Britain, this mushroom is always found close to birch trees.

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David

Oak Apple

Oak Apple

Not an apple, but a mutant leaf forming the cradle for the larva of a gall wasp.

The hole is where the larva eventually came out.

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Snowy wax cap

Snowy wax cap

The snowy wax cap, Hygrocybe nivea, is bright white in colour.

Despite this, it can be hard to spot lurking in short grass in places like sportsfields or lawns.

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David

Rose hips

Rose hip

Bright colours aren’t always a sign that something should not be eaten.

During the second world war, schoolkids were sent to pick rosehips, which are a rich source of vitamin C.

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David

Bolbitius vitellinus

Bolbitius vitellinus

This tiny and brightly coloured mushroom doesn’t have a common English name. Bolbitius vitellinus can be found hiding in short grass. Like many things in nature, its colour is the clue that it shouldn’t be eaten.

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David

Tiny fairiesbonnets

Fairies' bonnets

These mushrooms, growing through moss, were only about a quarter of an inch high.

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Feathered Thorn Moth

Feathered Thorn Moth

This moth was attracted to settle on a window by the brightness of the house lights.

The feathery antenna is a characteristic feature of this species.

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Coprinus domesticus

https://www.flickr.com/photos/davea2007//4045586259

Another species of inkcap. Although it is fairly common, and reasonably conspicuous, it does not have a generally accepted English name. Surprisingly few species of fungi do.

Coprinus domesticus

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David

Goose

Goose

There were only traces of colour on the feathers and beak of this goose, which is probably a cross between a barnacle goose and a white one.

It was happily swimming in the canada goose flock in West Park.