I celebrated my birthday last week at the Kerr Bay campground in St. Arnaud, New Zealand (a regular stomping ground over the past few months). It's only an hour's drive southwest along the Wairau River from Blenheim.
Lake Rotoiti
Spring has arrived and that means the end of the peak mushroom season. There aren't many mushrooms out right now, and many mycophiles feel a little down when the large flushes disappear. I view it as a sign that I should slow down and pay more attention. There are still treasures to find in the forest, even when it appears barren.
One of those treasures was the endangered tea-tree fingers I spotted for the first time last month. They’re still holding on, which is a good sign that the season always leaves something behind.
I also found a very interesting crust fungus called Byssomerulius psittacinus. This corticioid species doesn't look like a typical mushroom. Instead, it spreads across dead beech wood (Nothofagus) in a thin scarlet/purple layer, almost like someone painted it.
I thought I found a huge carrot while walking the Peninsula Track (talk about a true carrot-and-stick situation), it turned out to be Australovuilleminia coccinea.
This species is very interesting because it is the only one of its kind (the only species in the genus), was described in 2010, and is only found in New Zealand. It grows as a thin orange crust that covers the inside of a branch.