Category Archives: Fungus

Tree Fungus

A giant fungus, perhaps Chicken of the Woods, surprised me as I stepped around the back of a very large tree.

Fungus on Tree
Fungus on Tree

Close up…

Fungus on Tree
Fungus on Tree

The tree does not look healthy, perhaps the result of or contributor to, the fungus that often thrive on rotting vegetation.

Fungus on Tree
Fungus on Tree

Or maybe both.

Fungus on Tree
Fungus on Tree

Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, Charleston, SC
January 31, 2023

Hidden Mushroom World

It was a slow bird day at the swamp and I was looking for movement around the edges.

Mushrooms Growing In A Tree
Mushrooms Growing In A Tree

I didn’t see any moving creatures but did spot two groups of fungus that were in their own worlds in a crevice of a dead tree.

Mushrooms Growing In A Tree
Mushrooms Growing In A Tree

The next two images were taken with the Canon built in flash.

Mushrooms Growing In A Tree
Mushrooms Growing In A Tree

I didn’t have great footing and as I didn’t want to end up in the swamp I didn’t try to get the two groups together.

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Mushrooms Growing In A Tree

Here’s a wider shot of the tree where you can see the grouping from my first image; the second is a bit to the left. The tree had to have been magnificent in its day and is huge. I doubt I could put my arms around that limb. Sadly it has deteriorated noticeably in the five years I’ve been passing by.

Mushrooms Growing In A Tree
Mushrooms Growing In A Tree

Flowing Fungus

From a distance it looked like something man-made, maybe a piece of trash stuck in the tree trunk by a human.

White Fungus on Tree
White Fungus on Tree

Fortunately it turned out to be nature-made.

White Fungus on Tree
White Fungus on Tree

And quite bizarre looking, sort of like a lava flow.

White Fungus on Tree
White Fungus on Tree

A close up view of the strands:

White Fungus on Tree
White Fungus on Tree

 

Shelf Fungi

I spotted all three of these fungi just a few yards (meters) apart from the boardwalk crossing a swamp.

The first one struck me as a great spot for a bird or insect to perch although I don’t know how securely it is attached to the tree and no obliging subjects came along to test it out.

White Fungus on Tree Trunk
White Fungus on Tree Trunk

The next one was much more delicate, and also could serve as a perch but I suspect it wouldn’t hold up to much weight.

White Fungus on Tree Trunk
White Fungus on Tree Trunk

This final group was on a tree facing the one just above, looking like auditorium seating for a performance.

White Fungus on Tree Trunk
White Fungus on Tree Trunk

Fungi

These fungi images were taken a few days apart in October. The first one was tucked up against a tree. The tree stood off a path where I couldn’t get closer. The color was what made me notice.

Tree Fungi
Tree Fungi

A few days later I saw a similarly colored free-standing patch of a similar fungus.

Ground Fungi
Ground Fungi