Maybe?
This beautiful coral fungus has popped up in our sand dunes and was spotted by one of our volunteer guides (photo, below, by Peter Phillips). Peter thought is unusual enough to try and find out a bit more.
Coral fungi have several different species in the UK but all are associated with trees. And that is what makes this one unusual. The county recorder for Suffolk, Neil Mahler, has taken a sample and forwarded it on to the experts at Kew Gardens who will be able to give us a definitive answer: is it a never described species – new to science, or is it something already known growing in an odd position? Time will tell! Either way it’s a remarkable find and a beautiful thing.
Coral fungi belong to the Genus Ramaria and can be found in wooded areas across the UK, they all have a distinctive branching coral-like structure with subtle differences making it possible to identify some of the species in the field, while the other species require much closer examination. Like all fungi, coral fungi ‘feed’ on dead and decaying organic material and most species appear to have an association with the roots of specific host trees, some are known to grow on decaying wood and there is a chance that this one could be growing on a buried bit of wood, certainly there are no trees nearby!
Can I eat it?
Err… no.
There’s something about fungi that makes people ask this question. In this case the answer is definitely no! If it is a new species it is incredibly rare with only one other reference from Europe of a coral fungus growing in sand dunes away from trees. If it turns out to be a more common species growing in an odd position that would still make it something not to eat, who knows what it is feeding on and the impact this might have on its edibility. The genus Ramaria has a couple of species that are considered edible but many species in that genus that are known to cause vomiting and diarrhoea. Also, it is growing in a SSSI, a protected area, so it is illegal to pick it with the landowner's permission. This is the fruiting body of the fungus, producing the spores that, with luck, will land somewhere suitable and grow into the next generation of this fabulous fungi.
Photo by Alex Pilling
If it is a new species then there is a chance to come up with a new name. If you have any suggestions get in touch, but, please, not Fungus McFungus-Face!
[This is a guest blog, written by Chris Ford, Minsmere Learning Officer]
Oh go on, Boaty would be so pleased to have a name sake. Otherwise, OMG how interesting. Is it a one off at the moment? Any other finds nearby? I live in an estate that was a Chivers orchard many years ago. Just days ago, a great friend related playing in the orchards as a child. My lawn is 400 sq. metres and has been mid line ploughed to remove builders' rubble but year on year produces amazing toadstools that, if related, must be from wood/roots some way down. Please; FungusMcFungus would be appropriate, the cause started in Suffolk.
At the moment there are just four small clumps within about one square metre, but it could yet turn up elsewhere in the dunes. We'll await the results of the analysis by Kew with interest.
As regards your fungi, they may be associated with old tree roots, or simply with the grasses themselves. The fungi we see are simply the "fruiting" parts of a much more extensive organism that occurs in association with the roots of trees and plants, or rotting vegetative matter