Cycling past Waxcaps

I’m cycling on Dartmoor when I see a Blackening Waxcap, Hygrocybe conica. It’s always a thrill so spot one, so I dismount and get my phone camera out.

Waxcap - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

It’s a fairly common grassland fungus. They can be red, orange and yellow but eventually turn black.

Waxcap - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

Underneath, the gills are entertaining. As gills are radial, from the stem to the outside of the cap, the distance between the gills increases the further from the stem you go, just like the spokes on my bicycle’s wheels. That’s when other, shorter, gills appear to take up the space. There must be some beautiful mathematics which describes when it’s worth having a gill in the gap to make use of the cap.

Waxcap - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the)

I’m glad I stopped to marvel at them. I was also going uphill, and needed a rest, but that wasn’t the reason I stopped, honest.

More Waxcaps

Date Waxcaps - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the) A date with Waxcaps A trip to Somerset to see my friend Martin had the unintended bonus of a walk and a crop of… read more
Date Waxcap - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the) One of Britain’s rarest fungi So you think it doesn't look like much? I think it looks fabulous. It's growing in the short grass around… read more
Hygrocybe intermedia - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the) The most beautiful bouquet of Killerton Waxcaps Killerton is one of my favourite National Trust places in Devon. It's one of the ones which was sold to… read more
Hygrocybe conica - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the) Blackening Waxcaps There's a Blackening Waxcap, Hygrocybe conica, on the moist, shady roadside verges of the industrial estate. It's a beautiful colour.… read more
Waxcap - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the) Waxcaps on the wane We're on a trip to north Devon, near Lynmouth, on an organised fungus foray. I'm particularly excited about the grassland… read more
Waxcaps - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the) Waxcaps Waxcap fungi thrive on damp, 'unimproved' grassland, or rather grassland which hasn't be ruined by artificial fertiliser or herbicides. A… read more
Pink Ballerinas cavorting in the grass If there are pink ballerinas on your lawn they could be one of only two things: 1. Actual ballerinas, dressed… read more
Hygrocybe punicea - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the) Crimson Waxcaps Waxcaps live in unimproved grassland. That means they are often only found in graveyards as the rest of the grassland… read more
Hygrocybe pratensis - Deer Park Farm - The Hall of Einar - photograph (c) David Bailey (not the) Waxcaps in the meadows There are Waxcaps in the meadows in Devon: Meadow Waxcaps. I'm looking through some old photographs of fungi and see… read more

Feel free to leave a Reply :)