Saturday, June 7, 2008

Colour in the forest

One of the most colourful members of the forest bird community in Tasmania is the Spotted Pardalote, a bird that spends almost all its time in the eucalypt canopy foraging for psyllid insects and an associated exudate called lerp. This tiny bird nests in hollows it excavates in the ground.
A colony of the bright yellow Dermocybe canaria appears in the same place every year.

Russula sp.
I find many different Russula species near home. Most are large and distinctly coloured in reds or purples.

Billardiera longiflora (purple appleberry) is one of three purple coloured fruits in the forest. The plant is one of only a few climbing plants in Tasmania and although the fruits look succulent and hang from the plants throughout the colder months, no birds or other animals are known to eat them.

Leocarpus fragilis

Although these yellow structures resemble eggs or seeds they are in fact the spore producing fruit of a slime mould. They were covering a dead fern frond and I know from previous experience that I needed to take the photograph immediately. If I'd left it for a few hours this ephemeral fruit would be gone.

Campanella olivaceonigra

This is a delicate fungus I usually see on the dead fronds of cutting grass (Gahnia grandis). This morning I found it on a eucalypt stick. Its upper side, the visible surface, is a dirty blackish colour, but the underside is pure white and beautifully patterned between the gills.
Amanita xanthocephala
This is a common and distinctive fungus that grows in the drier parts of the forest. It is a native Amanita and similar to, but smaller than the European fly agaric (Amanita muscaria).

4 comments:

Mosura said...

It's great to have found another Tasmanian Nature Blog. I hope you don't mind that I've put a link to you from my own blog. Your photography is excellent especially your fungi shots. I will definitely be back to read future entries.

Junior Lepid said...

I'm glad I found your Blog too (via mosura's Blog by the way!)

I've recently become interested in mycology, recording everything I can find in my immediate area with images and a few notes posted on my Flowers Frogs & Fungi Blog. As a complete novice, some ID's may be incorrect and I apologise for that! I've also joined Fungimap. I want to continue monitoring fungi as I suspect climate change may influence not only fungi but invertebrates as well and I believe we cannot underestimate the importance of data collection now.

Inspector Clouseau said...

Nice work. Absolutely amazing photos, especially those of the insects. Great colors. I came across your blog while blog surfing using the “next blog” button on the Nav Bar of blogger.com. I am continually fascinated by the types of blogs that exist on the Internet, and the various, creative ways in which people all over the globe express themselves. Thanks for sharing.

http://www.theviewfromoutsidemytinywindow.blogspot.com

C said...

Dear Sarah,
I am writing to ask if you would mind if The University of South Australia uses your photo of the female raspy cricket, displayed on your website, for a poster that we are putting together and also display it on our website - http://www.unisa.edu.au/barbarahardy/. We will acknowledge you as the photographer and the source web address.

Thankyou very much for your time.
Kind Regards
Carolyn Herbert