Was taking some shots of these for a fungi & lichen exhibition we are working on and thought I'd post one here as well. Perhaps not the most exciting of subjects but one of the first real signs of spring in our old woodlands.
interesting change to see some fungi. never seen these before and I'm quite keen on fungi. what sort of environment do they like? Good composition and depth of field. Might consider cloning bright foliage beneath first specimen as i find it slightly distracting. Best wishes Peter
There are two species of Scarlet elf cap in the UK, S. austriaca and S. coccinea. They are indistinguishable without microscopy (white hairs on underside and spore shapes differ). Sarcoscypha coccinea, as pictured here, appears to be the much rarer. Elf caps are reasonable widespread in ancient woodlands in western Britain (I think), the fruiting bodies appearing from late December through the spring. They are saprophytes and, in our area, seem to grow best on fallen elm and hazel branches. here, they are often associated with beds of golden saxifrage, so must prefer reasonably damp conditions. I attach another photo showing a group in situ.
Good to see, agree it would be nicer without the bit of foliage below the nearest specimen, I might have spent a bit of time removing the lighter debris, but a very nice in-situ image.
Discussion
5 repliesWas taking some shots of these for a fungi & lichen exhibition we are working on and thought I'd post one here as well. Perhaps not the most exciting of subjects but one of the first real signs of spring in our old woodlands.
Regards
Malcolm
My only nit is the green leaf beneath the front fungi moves your eye away from the fungi.
Hi Peter
There are two species of Scarlet elf cap in the UK, S. austriaca and S. coccinea. They are indistinguishable without microscopy (white hairs on underside and spore shapes differ). Sarcoscypha coccinea, as pictured here, appears to be the much rarer. Elf caps are reasonable widespread in ancient woodlands in western Britain (I think), the fruiting bodies appearing from late December through the spring. They are saprophytes and, in our area, seem to grow best on fallen elm and hazel branches. here, they are often associated with beds of golden saxifrage, so must prefer reasonably damp conditions. I attach another photo showing a group in situ.
Cheers
Malcolm