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| The 'Winter Stalkball Fungus' |
It is coming to the end of the fungi ‘fruiting’ season at
Attenborough Nature Reserve, but there is one species in particular that is
receiving an unusual amount of attention. Tulostoma brumale, the Winter
Stalkball, is a rare type of puffball fungus that has not been seen in
Nottinghamshire for over 100 years! 112 years to be exact, with the last one being
recorded in Colwick
Park in 1898. This is a
totally new species for Attenborough and was discovered during one of the
Nature Reserve’s organised annual fungi identification courses, led by members
of the Nottinghamshire Fungi Group.
Despite the fruiting body of the Winter Stalkball fungus
being matchstick thin and only 2-5cm high with a 0.5-1cm puffball sat on the
top, it caught the attention of an eagle eyed visitor who was on the identification
course. The fungus was found hidden amongst the moss on the edge of Corbett’s
Meadow adjacent to The Village Green. Tulostoma brumale is light grey/ brown in
colour and on the top of the puffball is a papillate projection with a small
opening, the ostiole, from which millions of spores are released in order for
it to reproduce. A specimen had to be taken away by the fungi group for further
identification before it could be confirmed as being this rare species.
The Winter Stalkball is generally uncommon in the UK. One
of the reasons it is extremely rare in Nottinghamshire is that it is normally
found in sandy, alkaline soils and sand dunes where it is associated with
mosses and short grass. This species was however more frequent during the
Victorian era when lime mortar, used for construction, provided suitable
growing conditions on old stone walls. Formerly a slag heap from the Beeston
Boiler Company, Corbett’s Meadow, where the fungus was discovered, has now transformed
into a species rich wild flower meadow. The low nutrient levels make the meadow
ideal for a great number of native wild flowers including three species of
orchid. It has been suggested that the lime used during the smelting process
could still be present in the slag and the soil, and would therefore create
suitable conditions for the Winter Stalkball fungus here.
229 species of fungi have been identified at Attenborough in
the last 5 years through our organised fungi walks and from findings by local
naturalists. The latest, Galerina laevis, was found by a member of the
Nottinghamshire Fungi Group when he returned to photograph the Winter
Stalkball! With names such as Dead Man’s Fingers, Jelly Rot, Toad’s Ear, Crystal
Brain and Chicken of the Woods it is hard not to enjoy studying the many different
species of fungi that can be found on the Reserve. Many species continue to
‘fruit’ into the winter months, so why not go out and photograph some fungi of
your own? Please do not pick any fungi you find on the Nature Reserve. If you
would like to find out more, the Nottinghamshire Fungi Group has a calendar of
organised walks which runs from September through to December which includes
some that are open to interested members of the public. For more information
visit www.nottsfungigroup.org.uk
