Thursday 15 December 2011

Parrot Waxcap

Parrot Waxcap, Hygrocybe psittacina. Young specimen. High Elms Country Park, 10 December 2011.
Parrot Waxcap, Hygrocybe psittacina. Young specimen. High Elms Country Park, 10 December 2011.
I was surprised to see this green fungus in the woods. The colour is unusual; I have seen red, orange, white and yellow fungi before but not one like this.

I was browsing around the woods in High Elms Country Park before a meeting of the Orpington Field Club, so I was able to show the photo to them straight away, and of course a couple of them knew it. I looked it up later and it is not supposed to be scarce, though it isn't supposed to grow in the woods.

But it can't be anything else. The young ones are quite green, and they become more yellowish as they age. They are particularly slimy, as I found when I picked one to photograph the gills.

Parrot Waxcap, Hygrocybe psittacina. High Elms Country Park, 10 December 2011.
Parrot Waxcap, Hygrocybe psittacina. High Elms Country Park, 10 December 2011.
Parrot Waxcap, Hygrocybe psittacina. High Elms Country Park, 10 December 2011.
Parrot Waxcap, Hygrocybe psittacina. High Elms Country Park, 10 December 2011.

2 comments:

  1. Hi Bill, Great photos of a stunning little mushroom :-))

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  2. Thanks, Mel, a comment much appreciated from the author of such a consistently good blog as yours.

    Bill

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