The Great Sun-orchid – Thelymitra grandiflora

Thelymitra grandiflora aka Great Sun-orchid, Giant Sun Orchid

Thelymitra grandiflora aka Great Sun-orchid, Giant Sun Orchid

Thelymitra grandiflora aka Great Sun-orchid, Giant Sun Orchid

Thelymitra grandiflora aka Great Sun-orchid, Giant Sun Orchid

Thelymitra grandiflora aka Great Sun-orchid, Giant Sun Orchid

Thelymitra grandiflora aka Great Sun-orchid, Giant Sun Orchid
Working classification…
Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Charophyta
Class: Equisetopsida
Subclass: Magnoliidae
Superorder: Lilianae
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Orchidoidae
Tribe: Diurideae
Subtribe: Thelymitrinae
Mount George Conservation Park (Deanery Hill), South Australia – October 18th, 2014 – warm conditions after previous day’s rain

Photos & Text: Michal Dutkiewicz

This is not a common species, but it is pretty spectacular! One source in The South Australian Naturalist, November, 1919, described it as “The most robust member of the genus”, and in The Gardener’s Chronicle, April 15th, 1882 this species was described as “…the largest and most beautiful Thelymitra known”. Flowers about 3cm wide heavily clustered up a tall stem 35-75cm high. Among the many similar plain blue species, this is possibly the least difficult to identify because of its size and the lemony colouration of its central sex parts. Like all Sun orchids, this species needs warm weather over 25 degrees C to open the flowers. It blooms from October to December.

http://bie.ala.org.au/species/urn:lsid:biodiversity.org.au:apni.taxon:563420
http://www.johnwamsley.com/november21.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thelymitra

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The Ghost Fungus That Glows In The Dark!

Omphalotus nidiformis aka Ghost Fungus

Omphalotus nidiformis aka Ghost Fungus

Omphalotus nidiformis aka Ghost Fungus

Omphalotus nidiformis aka Ghost Fungus

Omphalotus nidiformis aka Ghost Fungus

Omphalotus nidiformis aka Ghost Fungus

Omphalotus nidiformis aka Ghost Fungus

Omphalotus nidiformis aka Ghost Fungus, Pleurotus nidiformis, Pleurotus lampas
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Basidiomycota
Class: Agaricomycetes
Order: Agaricales
Family: Marasmiaceae
Mount George Conservation Park (Deanery Hill area), South Australia – June 4th, 2014 – wet conditions growing at the base of a tree

Photos: Michal Dutkiewicz

This ghostly white mushroom has a top tinted with other colours – It was originally categorized as a Pleurotus, an edible group, but its chemistry makes it poisonous/inedible – It is a large and spectacular fungus by South Australian standards – Its stem is usually hidden behind other tops in their crowded bunch, feeding on dead or dying wood, usually at the base of trees – It is from Southern Australia and Tasmania, and has recently been sighted in India – Here is a Link to a night shot showing its bioluminescence – It’s not really intense to the naked eye, so I assume this is a pretty long exposure:

http://ichykoo.com/2012/03/28/omphalotus-nidiformis-a-mushroom-that-glows-in-the-dark-does-it-also-have-health-benefits/
http://fungimap.org.au/index.php/fduonline-home/130/294/agarics/P-omphalotus-nidiformis
http://bie.ala.org.au/species/Omphalotus+nidiformis
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omphalotus_nidiformis

Mycena Metropolis: 2 – Mycena viscidocruenta – A Red Toadstool

Mycena viscidocruenta aka Cruentomycena viscidocruenta, Ruby Bonnet

Mycena viscidocruenta aka Cruentomycena viscidocruenta, Ruby Bonnet

Mycena viscidocruenta aka Cruentomycena viscidocruenta, Ruby Bonnet

Mycena viscidocruenta aka Cruentomycena viscidocruenta, Ruby Bonnet

Mycena viscidocruenta aka Cruentomycena viscidocruenta, Ruby Bonnet

Mycena viscidocruenta aka Cruentomycena viscidocruenta, Ruby Bonnet

Mycena viscidocruenta aka Cruentomycena viscidocruenta, Ruby Bonnet

Mycena viscidocruenta aka Cruentomycena viscidocruenta, Ruby Bonnet

Mycena viscidocruenta aka Cruentomycena viscidocruenta, Ruby Bonnet
Kingdom: Fungi
Phylum: Basidiomycota
Class: Agaricomycetes
Order: Agaricales
Family: Mycenaceae
Mount George Conservation Park (Deanery Hill area), South Australia – June 4th, 2014 – wet conditions growing on a litter of twigs on ground

Photos & Text: Michal Dutkiewicz

The colour of this species is pure red, the gills are a little paler, and the stem a little darker. In the younger specimens, the cap is a small globe shape, but it flattens and the sides turn up leaving the centre of the cap depressed – This species rots wood and these tend to grow on the ground on twigs etcetera – It is found in forests and more open heathland and in gloomy midwinter, they can be a thrilling jolt of colour. They are found across Australia and New Zealand. Below are some links to other Mycena articles on SAN-WP as well as some external pages:

https://sanatureteers.wordpress.com/2014/12/08/mycena-metropolis-1/

http://fungimap.org.au/index.php/fduonline-home/123/294/agarics/P-mycena-viscidocruenta
http://www-public.jcu.edu.au/discovernature/fungi/fungi/JCUDEV_017265
http://eol.org/pages/6676287/overview

Yellow Goblets In The Eucalypt Forests – Austropaxillus infundibuliformis

Austropaxillus infundibuliformis

Austropaxillus infundibuliformis

Austropaxillus infundibuliformis

Austropaxillus infundibuliformis

Austropaxillus infundibuliformis

Austropaxillus infundibuliformis

Austropaxillus infundibuliformis (?) aka Paxillus infundibuliformis, Phylloporus infundibuliformis
Kingdom: Fungi
Phylum: Basidiomycota
Class: Agaricomycetes
Order: Boletales
Family: Serpulaceae
Mount George Conservation Park – Deanery Hill – 2014-06-14 – soggy, wet conditions near main track in Eucalypt forest in sclerophyll litter

Photos & Text: Michal Dutkiewicz

This golden-bright and arrestingly-shaped mushroom is rather large for an Australian species and can be found across Australia in Eucalypt forests growing on the ground. Until it was discovered that it and its relatives, including Austropaxillus muelleri, were atypical of the genus Paxillus, they were listed under that genus. The underside forked, gill-like structures belie the fact this is actually a Bolete, which has a different structure on its undersurface that usually (in the case of most Bolete genera such as Boletus, Suillus and Phlebopus, for example) takes the shape of little tubes that look a little like a fine mesh of honeycomb or tubes packed side to side. Austropaxillus are mycorhizal, which means they form an attachment and relationship to the roots of trees – The relationship is mostly symbiotic, ie. beneficial to both organisms.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austropaxillus_infundibuliformis

Master Of Disguise

Canarvonella sp aka Green-body Matchstick (?)
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Orthoptera
Superfamily: Eumastacoidea
Family: Eumastacidae
Mount George Conservation Park, South Australia – November 1st, 2014 – high rocky path area in mild, breezy conditions

The distinctive clambering with their their short front legs and long back legs is very different from the typical hop we expect from Grasshoppers – I love watching the Matchstick Grasshoppers – I have done my best with the ID, but it’s just a guess.

Spotted Sun Orchids Have A Lush Colour Palette

Thelymitra ixioides aka Spotted Sun Orchid
Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Angiospermae
Class: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Mount George Conservation Park – October 18th, 2014 – warm conditions after previous day’s rain

These are my favourite Sun Orchids – The blues, mauves, sea greens and dash of yellow make it a harmonious pictorial delight – They did not evolve to please the human eye, but whatever lucky creature they attract, I am glad we get to share them.

The Salmon Thelymitra

Thelymitra rubra aka Salmon Sun Orchid
Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Angiospermae
Class: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Mount George Conservation Park, South Australia – October 18th, 2014 – warm, dry conditions