Recording Fungi (North Wiltshire)

Click here to download a copy of the report

For fungi in 2007, it was a rather patchy year with a moist spring and extremely dry summer, despite the flooding in adjacent Gloucestershire, leading to a late start for the fruiting of the autumnal species. All told the autumn peak season for the more common larger fungi is almost a fortnight later than it was a couple of decades ago, although some fungi are appearing sporadically earlier in the year and fruiting occasionally through to later in the season than previously.

The latest batch of fungus foray records has been processed and 2007’s foraying efforts have provided almost 2,400 records, bringing the grand total of Cotswold Fungus Groups contribution to a little over 28,000 records since it began back in 1992. All these records are available on the British Mycological Society’s FRDBI database as well as through the National Biodiversity Network’s database portal.

The long-awaited draft Red Data List of all biological species has now been ratified and adopted nationally, published by the National Biodiversity Network in late 2007. This lists some 77 species of fungi (70 Basidiomycetes including rust fungi and only 7 Ascomycetes) alongside 134 Lichens of concern for conservation, as a major revision of the previous 1992 JNCC list.

Many of the previously cited (1992 RDL) vulnerable and endangered fungi have been removed from the list, as it became obvious that there was enough recorded finds to support their relatively widespread and fairly common existence throughout the country. So long-gone are favourites such as: the Solitary Amanita (Amanita echinocephala), Satan’s Bolete (Boletus satanas), the Pink Waxcap (Hygrocybe calyptraeformis) and the Violet Coral (Clavaria zollingeri).

You can check out the fungi on the NBN Red Data List on the Association of British Fungus Groups website where it has a photo gallery of the species of conservation concern.

Amongst these 77 species of fungi on the finalised list we have 11 of them recorded in North Wiltshire, but only 6 with finds in the last fifteen years. The vast majority of these species are single records only, for example the Carroty False Truffle Stephanospora caroticola at Great Wood Stanton Park between Highworth and Swindon, The Orchard Tooth Sarcodontia crocea at Somerford Common and the Blackening Chanterelle Cantharellus melanoxeros at Ravensroost Wood in the Braydon Forest area.

Cantharellus melanoxeros a broadleaf-woodland species with its typical darkening reaction in the flesh where it has been handled, hence its Common English name of the Blackening Chanterelle.