White Elfin Saddle - Helvella Crispa

White elfin saddle - Helvella crispa

The white elfin saddle is visually the polar opposite twin of the black elfin saddle (discussed in this post), it has a ghost- and skeleton-like appearance.

Fruitbody

The cap is typically 3 to 8cm across and 1 to 4cm high. The saddle-shaped cap is irregularly lobed and has a cream to a pale ochre colour. The upper surface is smooth¹, while the underside is pale ochre and very finely fuzzy. The cap does not attach to the stem where they meet.²

The stipe is 2 to 4 centimetres in diameter and 4 to 8 centimetres long.¹ The stipe is robust, densely ribbed, chambered and have a white to pale yellow colour.²

The flesh of the white elfin saddle is very thin and brittle.²

Microscopic features

The asci (seen on the left below) are typically 300 x 18 μm. Each ascus contains eight spores.¹

The spores (seen on the right below) are ellipsoidal, 18-20 x 10-13 µm and hyaline. The spore print is white.¹

Ecology

Helvella crispa is probably mycorrhizal and can be found growing singularly or gregariously under broadleaf trees, particularly under beeches and oaks, and very often beside paths. It most often emerges from the ground but might also grow from humid hardwoods, meaning it.¹

This mushroom grows from the late summer into the autumn. Sometimes it appears in the winter in warmer regions.²

Distribution

This species can be found growing decidious woodlands in Britain and Ireland, the mainland of Europe and many parts of North America.¹

Note: the links to the images are in the image discription.

References

1.

2.

Mushroom Appreciation

White Elfin Saddle: Identification Guide

Helvella Crispa, also known as the White Saddle or White Elfin Saddle, is a mushroom that has captivated people for centuries. Its unique sh

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The 'bleeding tooth fungus' in the new HBO series 'The Penguin' . . .

It is literally Hydnellum peckii a.k.a devil's tooth fungus, or, well it is based on it . . .

Visually they are pretty much the same, but in 'The Penguin' the 'bleeding tooth fungus' has psychoactive properties, which is why they are used for drugs. The actual Hydnellum peckii does not have psychoactive properties, it does however have other medically relevant compounds.

In my post about Hydenllum peckii, I wrote:

" The red sap contains a chemical compound called atromentin, which has anticoagulant properties and is commonly used to help prevent blood clots from forming. The pigment-producing compound found in several fungi species, atromenin also acts as a smooth muscle stimulant and has antibacterial and antineoplastic (anticancer) properties. "

I must say, this is not medical advice of any kind and it should not be treated as such.

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Fossil Shark Teeth ID Project - Part 1

I am currently working on a shark teeth ID project. It is a personal project I am working on because I got gifted a multitude of fossil shark teeth of various species.

I am fairly sure that the teeth (seen in the two pictures below) belong to the family Lamnidae and are from the species Cosmopolitodus hastalis.

If these teeth are in fact the teeth of Cosmopolitodus hastalis they ought to date back to the Miocene and Pliocene (which are the two epochs of the Neogene). Although the species was still alive during the Pleistocene, fossils found of Cosmopolitodus hastalis in Cadzand (in the Netherlands) date back to the Miocene and Pliocene.

One of the shark teeth (the left picture below) gifted to me is so severely eroded that I cannot visually identify it, however it is still a gorgeous fossil.

Between the various shark teeth I also found what I suspect to be a part of a fossilised chela (claw/pincer of a crab) (seen in the right picture below). Considering the location of the find I think it might be from Carcinus maenas and could date back to the Pliocene.

I forgot to mention, this species of fungi is actually edible when young.

Beefsteak mushroom - Fistulina hepatica

Which slasher got to this mushroom? Michael Myers? Ghostface?

Fruitbody

The cap is 7 to 20 centimetres across and 7 to 14 centimetres deep, it is irregularly shaped but often semicircular, fan-shaped, or tongue-like, with a lobed and wavy margin. The surface is wet and sticky when fresh, finely bumpy and bald. The cap has a liver red, reddish orange, or brownish red colour.¹

The pore surface is white to pale pinkish in colour, becoming yellowish and eventually reddish brown in age, bruising brown. The tubes are up to 1.5 centimetres long and distinctly separated with circular mouths.¹ This is unlike most polypores in which the pores are bonded together.²

The stipe is absent, or rudimentary and lateral. It is colored like the cap above, covered with the pore surface and firm in texture.¹

The flesh is whitish, streaked with reddish areas. It has a thick, soft and watery texture, exuding a reddish juice when squeezed.¹

Microscopic features and spore print.

The spores (seen below) are ovoid, smooth and about 4.5-6 x 3-4µm.² The spores are also hyaline to yellowish in KOH. The basiadia are 4-sterigmate, the hyphal system is monomitic and clamp connections are present.¹

The spore print is pale pinkish to yellow in colour.²

Ecology

This species saprobic and sometimes weakly parasitic on the wood and deadwood of oaks and other hardwoods, causing a brown rot. Fistulina hepatica is annual, growing from summer to fall. It grows alone or in small groups near the bases of trees and on stumps.¹

Distribution

It is widespread throughout Britain and Ireland and is found throughout the mainland of Europe and is widely distributed throughout North America.²

Note: the links to the images are in the image discription.

References

1.

2.

Mutuals

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@sickbugdude this is a lot of fun to do! :)

If you want to do this, I would recommend using paint markers because they dry faster and are imo easier to use than brushes.

If you are going to use it as a plant pot, you might want to put a hydrophobic layer on the in- and outside of the pot because otherwise the paint will droop.

I painted a plant pot today! It was awesome!

The beetles were based on pine chafers a.k.a. Polyohylla fullo, but because of the colours and the vertical stripes on the wings they don't really look like them.

Below a photograph of a pine chafer I made some time ago:)

Fossil Shark Teeth ID Project - Part 2

I am currently working on a shark teeth ID project. It is a personal project I am working on because I got gifted a multitude of fossil shark teeth of various species.

Up untill now I have only been able to identify one shark species, because the teeth are so characteristic. The teeth (seen in the picture below) belong to the species the Broadnose Sevengill Shark or Notorynchus cepedianus.

The Broadnose Sevengill Shark belongs to the family of Cow Sharks or Hexanchidae, which are considered the most primitive of sharks.

I actually just recently watched a documentary covering Broadnose Sevengill Sharks with Forrest Galante. It was called 'Alien Sharks: Strange New Worlds', it was from Sharkweek 2023 and it was really good!

I also have two different teeth which I am having a lot more difficulties with identifying (see the two pictures below). If anyone has any clue of which species these teeth may belong to, please let me know:)