From fairytale toadstools to fungi that look like birds' nests, experts say some of Britain's most unusual mushrooms are beginning to emerge as autumn arrives. Hidden in parks, woodlands and nature reserves, species ranging from the bright-red fly agaric to the rare red cage fungus can be found by anyone willing to slow down and take a closer look. For James Benwell, of the Birmingham and Black Country Wildlife Trust, searching for fungi has become a way to explore the outdoors with his young son.
He said mushroom spotting can transform an ordinary walk into an adventure, revealing colourful and unusual species that many people pass by without noticing. Across the West Midlands, fungi enthusiasts have recorded everything from tiny bird's nest fungi in Birmingham city centre, to fly agaric mushrooms growing beneath woodland birch trees and a rare red cage fungus discovered in Cannon Hill Park. Many species can go unnoticed among fallen leaves, rotting wood and the bases of trees, but Benwell said taking the time to look more closely opens up a hidden world.
"Every walk becomes interesting and exciting if you're exploring and if you're looking for new things," he said. With more than 15,000 species of fungi found in the UK, experts are encouraging people to photograph and record what they find, rather than pick them. Interest in fungi has grown in recent years, according to Lucas Large, chairman of the West Midlands Fungus Group, who said the organisation regularly attracted newcomers to its activities and fungi forays.
Benwell added one of the attractions was the variety of shapes, colours and forms that can be discovered throughout autumn. "Sometimes you've just got to look through the leaf litter a bit, and you'd be amazed at the colours and different shapes and sizes of mushrooms you can find when you do look," he said. Among the most recognisable species is the fly agaric,, external the striking red mushroom covered in white spots that has become closely associated with folklore and popular culture.
Benwell described it as "the mushroom of fairy tales". "It's in Alice in Wonderland, it's in Super Mario Brothers... It's everywhere as part of fairy tales and folklore," he said.
"But there are still adults who've never seen it." Other species offer equally unusual sights. Bird's nest fungi resemble miniature nests complete with tiny eggs, while the rare red cage fungus forms a vivid crimson lattice structure. The latter was spotted in Birmingham's Cannon Hill Park last year, in what Benwell said was only the second recorded sighting of the species in Birmingham and the Black Country.
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