Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: fallen branch

Many times that I post a photo of a mushroom or other fungus, the ID is always tentative. I am guessing that this very tiny, turquoise fungus is Blue Stain / Chlorociboria aeruginascens. I have only ever seen these tiny mushrooms maybe three times, though I have seen just the blue stain on wood more often. I will add a better, previously posted photo, taken a few years ago, in a comment box below. If my ID is correct, then the following information applies. "The stained wood is more frequently encountered, but the tiny mushrooms are seldom seen. Saprobic (i.e.mushrooms that are saprobes survive by decomposing dead or decaying organic material) on well decayed, barkless hardwood logs and sticks (especially those of oaks; "green oak" is valuable lumber); evident as green-stained wood year-round, but the fruiting bodies typically appearing in summer and fall; widely distributed in North America. The fruiting body is cup-shaped at first, becoming flattened or disc-shaped; up to 1 cm across; with a tiny stem that may be central or somewhat off-center; smooth or slightly wrinkled; uniformly blue-green." www.mushroomexpert.com/chlorociboria_aeruginascens.html On 3 September 2016, we had a fungi morning, which was quite rewarding and definitely fun. Our leader and friend, Karel, is very knowledgeable about fungi and he took 14 of us (plus Karel's two beautiful Beagles) on a foray to West Bragg Creek, maybe an hour's drive west of the city. We had been here a few times over the years, either looking for fungi or on botany outings. Photographing our findings usually means that I am way at the back of the group or have fallen back with a friend or two. Consequently, the mushrooms have often already been plucked/cut by the time we catch up to the rest of the participants. I also miss a lot of what is being said about IDs and details. It would take far too long to write down the name of each find - each photo taken would have to be carefully numbered so that the right name could be attached and this would be such a hassle when out with a group. Since this outing, Karel has sent an email containing several photos along with IDs. The rest of my photos will have to be just nameless 'pretty pictures' : ) I must add here that any IDs that I give are always tentative, as I know so little about fungi. Another thing to add is that I never, ever pick and eat wild mushrooms!! Too many look similar, some edible, others poisonous. If you are not a fungi expert, never take the risk of eating any of them. I met up with friend, Sandy, at 8:15 am and she drove us out to the meeting place. My drive from home was done with my windshield wipers on my new car working non-stop - was it raining? No, it had rained the day before - hail, too, on my gleaming new vehicle that I had only had for five days! I needed to clean the windshield, but, once again, I couldn't for the life of me figure out how to turn the wipers off. Amazes me how complicated the wiper options are! Our morning walk started off by going across the small bridge not far from the parking lot, then part way up the hill and then bush-whacking our way through the forest. This walk, which ended around lunch time, was the main one, but we did stop at a small, gravel parking area a few minutes along the main road, to do a second walk to check for any different mushrooms. This extra walk has yielded a few beauties in past years. Perhaps the most interesting find was a very small twig that had several tiny, turquoise coloured fungi cups on it. The colour looks so out of place in a natural area. My photos of them did not turn out very well, but I will eventually post one of them, just for the very unusual colour. From here, a few of us stopped at the Cinnamon Spoon cafe in Bragg Creek for lunch. Always a most enjoyable way to finish any outing. Before we climbed into the car for our return drive to Calgary, Sandy and I wandered into the beautiful Art Gallery, owned and run by Bob and Candy Cook. Named Branded Visuals Inc.(Printing Services/Wildlife Gallery), this small store is overflowing with Bob's absolutely amazing photographic works of art. Thanks so much, Bob and Candy, for remembering our chance meeting a number of years ago, down in Fish Creek Park, and for your overly generous words about my own photography. www.brandedvisuals.com/index.html Thanks so much, Karel, for giving us a great morning! We really appreciate your passing on your knowledge to us. The same thanks go to Suzanne, the mushroom specialist in Calgary. Sandy, really appreciate the ride there and back!

This photo was taken in such horribly harsh light, but I need to add it to a couple of albums. Found growing on a small, fallen branch on the Dovers' property. In the morning of 25 September 2015, six of us were lucky enough to explore a tiny part of the land belonging to Frances and David Dover. For two of us (myself and our leader), this was our second visit - for the rest, it was a first time there. I will copy and paste the description I posted on Flickr from our first visit to the Dover's acreage, on 7 August 2015: "Yesterday, 7 August 2015, four of us were extremely fortunate to have the chance to visit the home and highly varied topographic 62-acre property belonging to Frances and David Dover. We felt honoured and privileged to meet and spend time with Frances and David, and also their daughter Carolyn and her husband Clair. A delightful family who welcomed us so warmly into their home and land. This acreage of grassland, forest, rolling hills - and special gardens - is not far from Millarville, SW of Calgary. In fact, it's in an area that I often drive through when I only have time for, or only feel like doing, a short drive. Amazing what little gems exist out there. This is not just a beautiful property, but is very special for various reasons. For one thing, read any history of Alberta and you will find the Dover family, including David's mother, Mary Dover. Second, among the trees and open "lawns", there are Peony flower beds, containing 100-150 heritage Peonies, each one different, that have now multiplied to more than 300 plants. Unfortunately, they bloomed a couple of weeks early this year, and all the flowers had gone to seed. Another open area had a different kind of ground cover - Thyme, which smelled wonderful. If I remember correctly, this was the open space where the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra performed on one occasion! There are two large ponds on the property and another smaller area of water that they hope to turn into a Japanese Garden. It was while walking around the latter that a large brown 'shape' could be seen through the dense trees - a handsome Moose buck. I will look properly at the four or so photos I just managed to get and will slip one of them into my photostream sometime soon, just for the record, definitely not for the photo quality : ) This was also where a Great Horned Owl was seen flying through the trees by some of us (not me, ha!). There are grassy paths winding through the acreage, up and down hill, that take David seven hours to mow. They are not pristine, velvety paths, but instead, they seem to take nothing away from the wildness of the whole area. One of the animals that have passed through is the Cougar. In fact, several years ago, I saw a video taken on a nearby (or adjacent?) property, where a 'kill' and night-time camera had been set up and a total of six different Cougar individuals were seen! Even the Dover's home is unique and beautiful. It is completely built of concrete - floors, walls, ceilings, roof, deck, and so on. A Hummingbird feeder and regular bird feeders, set up on the patio, attract a variety of birds. We sat on the patio after our walk to eat our packed lunches - and to enjoy a delicious Orange Pound Cake that Frances had made for us, along with refreshing Iced Tea - thank you so much for this, Frances! Yesterday, while I was waiting for one of three tiny Calliope Hummingbirds to come back, I was lucky enough to see a little Mountain Chickadee, along with many Pine Siskins. We could also hear a Red-tailed Hawk in the area. There is just so much I could write about this visit and family. Instead, or for now, I will add several links to more information on the Internet. This was a memorable day for us. Thank you so much, Frances and David, Carolyn and Clair, for being so kind and welcoming us into your home and gardens. books.google.ca/books?id=Tr36Tq_gadcC&pg=PA290&lp... www.westernwheel.com/article/20110727/WHE06/307279983/-1/... David's mother, Mary Dover (her father was A. E. Cross), was "a dynamic and distinguished Calgarian, particularly known for her work with the military during World War II." As well as being an army officer, and an alderman, she was also a preservationist. See the following link. www.albertachampions.org/champions-mary_dover.htm#.VcY1KP... ww2.glenbow.org/search/archivesMainResults.aspx?XC=/searc... glencoe.org/documents/10184/637479/The-History-of-Elbow-P... page 44-45 ." After our visit to the Dover's on 25 September 2015, I decided to drive eastwards along a road that I'd never driven before, until I reached the main road going south. From there, it was a fairly short drive to the Saskatoon Farm. As usual, I wandered round the grounds with my camera and then, when I was ready to leave, I ordered a pizza to take home with me. The inside of the gift shop has recently been renovated and they now have a pizza oven and area.

Ice crystals seen on the end of a fallen branch, east side of the Bow River between Burnsmead and Highway 22X, yesterday morning.