Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: no particular shape

This is a macro shot of a cluster of small fungi that seem to have no particular shape. Wish I knew a lot about mushrooms and other fungi. I wonder if they are some kind of Saddle fungus - I came across Helvella elastica on an Internet search last night, but I've no idea if they could be that. On 8 August 2015, I decided to drive SW of the city for a while. It was a Saturday, so I thought I would go and check if there were other people parked at Brown-Lowery Provincial Park. I had more or less stopped going into the forest there by myself, especially the last couple of years, knowing that Cougar and Bears can be seen there. All I have seen - so far! - is a large Moose on a couple of occasions. The place gives me the creeps, so I usually just walk through the trees closest to the parking lot. Just a minute or two after entering the forest near the parking lot, I flushed a Grouse, which scared the life out of me. They tend to wait, hidden, and then when you are almost by them, they suddenly "explode" out of the bushes, making ones heart beat fast. The opposite side of the trail, where I usually find a few mushrooms, had pools of water after the two devastating rain and hail storms that we had had recently. With several cars in the small parking lot, I decided to go just a short way into the park, trying to forget that animals can "smell fear". I did come across a few quite nice mushrooms, but with such a dry, hot summer, this season so far had not been good for fungi. As always, never eat any kind of mushroom unless you are an expert! The second time my heart started beating really fast was when I was trying to focus on a mushroom and I was aware of a deep, huffing kind of sound coming from right behind me. Slowly turning around, dreading what I might see, I discovered it was just a small Red Squirrel, low down on his/her tree, just a couple of feet away from me. I've never ever heard a Squirrel make this kind of sound before! Sounded rather like what I imagine a bear might sound like, ha. Almost back at the edge of the forest, I was happy as can be to hear quite a commotion that I recognized as being American Three-toed Woodpeckers. There were three of them high up in a tree, with at least one of them being a noisy, hungry juvenile that was feeding itself but every now and then would want the adult to feed it. This species is uncommon in Alberta, year round, so it's always a treat to see one - and especially three.

This is a macro shot of a cluster of small fungi that seem to have no particular shape. Wish I knew a lot about mushrooms and other fungi. I wonder if they are some kind of Saddle fungus - I came across Helvella elastica on an Internet search last night, but I've no idea if they could be that. This fungus was one of only a handful I saw at Brown-Lowery Provincial Park this year, and was taken on 23 August 2015. Such a lovely, bright colour to come across in the forest, surrounded by lush moss. After visiting my daughter in hospital the day before, I thought I had better get out and do a bit of walking, so I drove SW of the city and plucked up my courage and went into Brown-Lowery. I only went in a short way, but managed to find a few fungi fit to photograph. The light is never good in the forest, but the sun managed to come through and touch a few of the mushrooms. I met a couple of delightful young women along the path. I tried to point out an American Three-toed Woodpecker that was unfortunately very high up in a tree and barely visible. I had seen two others further along the path. Also lots of small birds, some of which were Warblers, but they were much too fast and distant for me to get photos. Then we got talking about mushrooms : ) Had a very interesting and enjoyable chat with them.