2011 Spring Forays Summary

In the Spring of 2011, from April 30 to May 29, we conducted twelve forays. More than 70 species were collected on these forays and full details will be available on the website shortly. The species collected included the following:

After the end of April the number of morels collected increased from very few to bountiful by the middle of May. These were mostly Morchella esculenta, with Morchella elata making a fairly good showing. A fair number of falsemorels, Gyromitra species, were also collected.

Umberto Pascali found a patch of false-truffles, possibly a Thaxterogaster species, in the York Forest Ballantrae tract on May 22. They were not fully buried, as would be true truffles. These puffball-like fungi are mushrooms with aborted gills and the gills were visible when the "puffballs" were sliced in half.

The bright red cup shaped fruiting bodies of Sarcoscypha austriaca were found on several forays, as were specimens of Black Witch's Butter, Exidia glandulosa. The jelly-like cones of Heterotextus alpina were found in the Durham Forest on May 28. The generally rainy and overcast weather may have contributed to the bonanza of jelly fungi.

Tim Myles found brackets of Heterobasidion irregulare, or white pocket rot, on a stump in the Nashville tract near Kleinburg on May 14. This white-rot agent is widespread in Ontario. The brackets often escape notice, as they are rather nondescript.

 White pine blister rust (Cronartium ribicola) fruiting bodies were noticed as orange-yellow miniature brackets. Ustulina deusta, the burnt crust fungus was present on nearly every foray. There were several examples of Chlorociborium aeruginascens, recognised by its blue-green staining of the wood. The wolf's milk slime mould, Lycogala epidendrum, was also abundant.

There was good member turn-out again this year, with the average number of participants at each foray being about 27, slightly over the previous year's spring average of 26. 

- D. Andrew White, Foray Director