Saturday 12 September 2020

URBAN TOADSTOOLS AND A PENNINE MOTH

Blogger has changed the way blogspot posts are formatted and it's now much harder to set the pictures beside the text. It takes ages. I first posted this article yesterday and find the pictures went skee-wiff in the emailed version. This is very annoying. I could have been distinguishing between poisonous and edible mushrooms. The re-arranging of the text might then have had serious consequences. As it is, it doesn't matter terribly but I've changed the layout to alternating photos and text and am re-posting, hoping the words and pictures stay together better this way. Apologies to those who will now be receiving this twice.
There is one change in the text. The toadstools have grown over night so I've changed that the largest is two and half inches across to four inches. It may change again. An evolving post.

Top view of toadstool A. 11th September 2020.
11th September 2020

A mixture of life challenges and photographing too many images has prevented me from posting over the last couple of months. I think I'll solve this by showing some of the things I see without necessarily feeling obliged to say much about them. Just sort of 'dash-em-off without thinking'. I'll begin with some toadstools. (Should one call them toadstools?)

The underside of toadstool A, 11th September 2020.
11th September 2020

The largest is about four inches across.

This is what they look like underneath.

They are growing on an urban lawn which is regularly but not closely mown.

I don't know what they are called.

Do you?

Toadstool B. 11th September 2020.
11th September 2020

This is another toadstool, nearby. It may be the same kind at a different stage of growth. I don't know.

Toadstool B from the side. Halifax UK. September 11th 2020.

This is it from the side.

Fox Moth Caterpillar. Bridestones Moor. September 11th 2020
Fox Moth Caterpillar.
Bridestones Moor.
September 11th 2020

And here is a Fox Moth caterpillar which I came across on Bridestones Moor yesterday. It's about two and a half inches long. It was crawling across the path in a very exposed landscape - rocks and grass but no trees about 1,400 feet above sea level. A tough environment.

Here's a link to a page about its life cycle. The site is based in Cornwall and I'm in Yorkshire but the Fox Moth is quite widespread in the UK. Not that I think I have ever seen either the caterpillar or the moth before. It's interesting how the photos on the link show how the male and female moths look very different from each other.

How are you doing?

(Could the toadstools be Amanita rubescens - Blushers?)

There's more about Fox Moths on the UK Moths site. (When you get to the page you can click on the separate photos for more info.)

13 comments:

Lisbeths Haveblog said...

It was nice to hear from you again. I have missed your way of noticing small details.

Lucy Corrander Now in Halifax! said...

Thank you Lisbeth. And thank you for your comment letting me know. It is good to know when one has company!

Linda P said...

It's good that you are blogging again. Photos of your finds and your observations are interesting. I appreciate the linked info.

Lucy Corrander Now in Halifax! said...

Thank you Linda. I'm glad you enjoy Loose and Leafy.

John "By Stargoose And Hanglands" said...

Nice to hear from you again. I think you're still allowed to call them "toadstools" in these politically-correct times, though it might hurt the feelings of the toads, of course.

Lucy Corrander Now in Halifax! said...

Hello John. It would be fun to find a toad sitting on one!

Linda said...

Lovely fungi photos. Looks like someone had a bite out of one of them. Hope you are winning the life challenges. Take care.

Phillip Oliver said...

Very interesting post! Overall, I like the Blogger changes. I notice that they keep making small changes (for example, they just changed the icon for the captions) so perhaps they are listening to complaints.

Bill said...

Glad you're back. Beautiful fungi photos, they are an interesting photo subject. Have a wonderful evening.

Lucy Corrander Now in Halifax! said...

Hello Philip. They are making changes and I hope they will make a few more. I've been firing off comments via the 'feedback' about the problems with the new version so I hope they are listening! It seems ok if one puts all the photos in the centre and alternates them with text. I've changed this post so it is like that and my next post has followed the same format. That way is straightforward. No problems. But I usually have the photos alternating from side to side with the text beside them instead of in between - more like a magazine. And that's what's not working properly.
I'm glad you enjoyed the post though!

Lucy Corrander Now in Halifax! said...

Hello Linda. Yes. I wonder if there's a single creature that began to eat it or if it's several smaller ones - slugs? What else? I know so little!

Lucy Corrander Now in Halifax! said...

Hello Bill. Thank you. I'm glad you like the photos. I'll be looking for more fungi over the next couple of months I expect.

Diana Studer said...

I'm rereading Alice Through the Looking glass.
One side made her grow and the other - but, which, is the other?