Tall brown mushroom with a thin stem, which seems nearly incapable of remaining upright if the wind blows, but rarely falls over. The brown cap often has a darker brown center. The gills are broad and white, with a white spore print. The stem is brownish to grayish, and may have tiny hairs, visible with a magnifier. It has an underground portion that can be nearly as long as the above ground stem. There are a few different species of Xerula, which can be differentiated microscopically. It grows on the ground, but feeds on decaying hardwood debris.
Grows on the ground under hardwoods. Light orange mushroom with broadly-spaced, creamy white gills and white latex. The latex has a pleasant taste. Around 3" tall, the stem snaps easily, and is pale orange to cream colored,with a white interior.
The asexual stage of Carbon Cushion fungus, which can be seen in the upper left of the photo.
White unformed mass which turns black over time.
This fungus fruits along with Exidia glandulosa.
Very tiny tufts of what look like lavender crystals, at least to my naked eye. There are also darker lavender cups. They were found in moist hardwood forest on the ground or on wood.
Reddish-purplish spathulate jelly like fungi growing on wood.
Very small, bright yellow, saucer shaped fungi growing on wood, usually in clusters.
Tough bracket fungus growing on fallen log. The underside looks like a tiny maze.
Striking blue-green, tiny cups. The fungus also stains green the wood on which it is growing.
This is the asexual stage. At maturity they are black.
Orangish-yellowish jelly fungus that grows on hardwood logs.
Malformed whitish shapes with a pinking tinge throughout. The unaborted form is sometimes nearby or with the aborted form. It is thought that the Entoloma attacks and parasitizes Armillaria mellea to form Entoloma abortivum.
White mushroom with a volva, growing from the trunk of a living tree.
Pink bracket fungus that grows together with Stereum ostrea.
Tough, reddish brown cap, with white pores. Light brown stem, with a "root" well into the ground.
Fruiting body yellowish buff with brown scales on top. Pores are hexagonally shaped and of irregular lengths, sometimes appearing raggedy.
Jelly-like globs of translucent black fungus, with perithecia that look like tiny dots on the surface.
Also called Black Knot of Cherry, it is a serious disease, and can stunt and kill trees.
Also called Orange Mock Oyster.
The bright orange really stood out against the brown all around it. I was surprised to find it growing in late December here in PA.
Inside of the common earthball. The spores have been dispersed. The exterior still has the brown scales.
An aggressive woody vine that twines around plants and trees and reproduces vigorously. The fruits are red, shiny, lobed berries that are originally encased in a yellow husk. The vines will cover a field, and will strangle trees. The added weight of the vines in the trees causes trunks and limbs to break.
These are in the Nightshade family. They look much like yellow cherry tomatoes, and the seeds resemble tomato seeds. The twigs have slim, sharp thorns, but I couldn't see any leaves. The yellow fruits are up to 3/4 inch across. They were growing in a large patch in an overgrown field on game lands.
Very small fungus that often appears in two forms. The asexual form (also called Crinula caliciiformis) has a black stem with a whitish to bluish white clump of goo for a head. Sometimes the head is gone, so you'll see what looks like a burnt out cardboard matchstick, often many at a time. The reproductive form is a small, black, flat, more or less circular fungus that can grow singly or in rows on fallen logs. I've always seen it growing between the rifts of the bark on the fallen logs.
The autumn "skeleton" of an unknown flower. At first I thought it was a wild carrot, but it lacks the "bird's nest" appearance of that flower.
