Well, I've loved eating them for years now. But it wasn't until I joined in the Urban Nature Walks that I got really interested in the in the wild. Now I enjoy seeing them in the wild, and am learning to identify them based on their looks and location.
Been a dry summer in Boston though, so not a lot of fungi on our Franklin Park walks.
On a recent Friday I took a field trip to Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary, southwest of Boston in Sharon. I had hoped to do some birding - but to no avail. Aside from a few regular birds, there wasn't much to see. (Although I heard a pileated woodpecker, he was not to be found).
Instead, I found a plethora of fungi!! The forest was damp enough and diverse enough there were mushrooms everywhere. Even more interesting, different parts of the forest held different species. Some parts of the forest were drier than others. Some got more sunlight. each had different medium for a mushroom to grow in.
Whatever the case, it made for some nice viewing and interesting photography. Some highlights of my walk are below....
As for birds - that didn't work out as well. Apparently they now have a meadow, which I didn't find until mid afternoon - and the birds hang out there in the mornings. Most birds were your regular cast of characters - Blue Jays, Robins, Downy woodpecker, Catbirds, Hummingbirds, and a cluster of Black Capped Chickadees (They seem to love pine trees).
I didn't find out until later that I had heard a Pileated Woodpecker while walking. (middle age frumpy guy with binoculars tuns into another middle age frumpy guy with camera and binoculars...) I ran into another birder and he told me that "That's too loud to have been a woodpecker" was the pileated. Had I known at the time, I might have gone seeking him out.
Black Capped Chickadee with punk haircut
Plenty if other wildlife as well. A few frogs, lots of dragonflies (huge ones, that wouldn't land anywhere for a good photo), and a ton of pollinators.
For more photos of my walk, see some of the highlights in this Flickr album.
If you're interested in identifying mushrooms yourself, I've found the book Fascinating Fungi of New England to be a great resource!
Thanks for visiting, and see my Flickr page for even more photos.
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