Skip to main content

Smoky Spindles

Clavaria fumosa 

Smoky Spindles

What to look for?

  • Smoky spindles have simple, unbranched tapered clubs, often formed into a cluster among the grass – or they can be growing singly. They are very brittle and can snap easily.
  • Their colour ranges from greyish brown to pinkish brown to pale-ochre brown. Their tips go darker with age and their spores are white.
  • They are often somewhat laterally flattened – sometimes straight, but more often wavy with bluntly pointed or rounded tips.
  • The individual stems are typically 2-12cm tall and 3-10mm in diameter.

Where to find them?

They are generally found in unimproved grassland (favouring acid or neutral grassland) and in leaf litter on woodland edges and clearings.  In the summer and autumn, they can be found on road verges, in cropped grassland and in churchyards.

After years of low-nutrient management, they can also appear on lawns.

Don’t mistake it with…

  • Clavaria fragilis is similar but has white spindly fruitbodies.
  • Clavulinopsis fusiformis has a similar form but is golden yellow. 

Other Species

Oak moss
with little tiny branches almost like a a lot of green tiny deer antlers

Oak moss

Evernia prunastri

Fanfare of trumpets lichen

Fanfare of trumpets lichen

Ramalina fastigiata 

Shaggy strap lichen
Shaggy Strap Lichen

Shaggy strap lichen

Ramalina farinacea

Olive Earthtongue

Microglossum olivaceum

Months

Season

Habitat

Reddish tongue like fungus emerging from grassland

How to identify

Fruiting bodyLike dark reddish, brown or olive green coloured clubs, or tongues, emerging from the soil
Fruiting body sizeUp to 7cm in height
StemUsually with shades of olive-green
SporesWhite

Where to find them?

Rare but when found usually on unimproved grassland, often mossy between late summer and autumn. 

Did you know?

The latin name for Olive Earthtongues is Microglossum Olivaceum. Microglossum means small tongue, while  olivaceum refers to the hint of olive to most of the fruitbodies (but note that the colour is very variable with some being much browner than others). 

 

Other Species

Oak moss
with little tiny branches almost like a a lot of green tiny deer antlers

Oak moss

Evernia prunastri

Fanfare of trumpets lichen

Fanfare of trumpets lichen

Ramalina fastigiata 

Shaggy strap lichen
Shaggy Strap Lichen

Shaggy strap lichen

Ramalina farinacea

Meadow Waxcap

Hygrocybe pratensis

Months

Season

Habitat

Apricot mushroom with flat top

How to identify:

CapApricot, slightly pitted and with powdery bloom sometimes visible with a hand lens, fading to buff with age. Convex, becoming flattened or slightly concave. 
Cap Diameter2.5 – 10 cm 
GillsPale whitish apricot 
StemsWhitish apricot, tapering to the base. 
FleshWhitish apricot 
SporesWhite

 

 

Where to find them?

Meadow Waxcaps (Hygrocybe pratensis) are a common find on cropped grassland and upland pastures. It appears from late August until December. Particularly in upland areas on acidic soil, the Meadow Waxcap is one of the few waxcap species that can tolerate small amounts of fertiliser being applied to its grassland habitat.

Did you know?

Two varieties of the Meadow Waxcap occur in BritainOne is apricot and the other is paler and almost white. It is a conspicuous and robust waxcap often persisting for several weeks. 

Don’t mistake it with…

Pink Ballerina

Other Species

Oak moss
with little tiny branches almost like a a lot of green tiny deer antlers

Oak moss

Evernia prunastri

Fanfare of trumpets lichen

Fanfare of trumpets lichen

Ramalina fastigiata 

Shaggy strap lichen
Shaggy Strap Lichen

Shaggy strap lichen

Ramalina farinacea

Blackening Waxcap

Hygrocybe conica 

A dark pointed mushroom with long stem growing in the grass

How to identify:

CapConical in shape. Typical waxcap texture. Dark to pale orange/yellow, blackening at the tip first or where bruised. 
Cap Diameter1.5 – 3.5 cm 
GillsPale lemon, also blackening with age. 
Stems Pale yellow, blackening with age.
FleshYellow
SporesWhite

 

Where to find them?

Blackening Waxcaps (Hygrocybe conica) sometimes appears in lines along roadside verges, particularly on hillsides or where the grass is well shaded, moist and mossy. 

Other common names

Witches Hat

Did you know?

Blackening Waxcaps can appear remarkably quickly after rain in late summer and autumn, but once mature they remain standing sometimes for more than two weeks. 

They are one of the most common waxcaps in Northern Europe.

Other Species

String-of-sausages lichen

String-of-sausages lichen

Meadow WaxCap
Apricot mushroom with flat top

Meadow WaxCap

Hygrocybe pratensis

Parrot waxcap

Gliophorus psittacinus 

Months

Season

Colour

Habitat

A Parrot Waxcap.

How to identify:

CapMainly green with underlying pink or yellow. Conical becoming flattened. Slimy texture. 
Cap Diameter2 – 4 cms 
GillsYellow, sometimes tinged green 
StemYellow-green, greener nearer the top 
FleshVariable, usually matches the cap colour 
SporesWhite

 

Where to find them?

The Parrot Waxcap (Gliophorus psittacinus) can be found in the summer and autumn on roadside verges,  cropped grassland and in churchyards. Appearing on lawns only after years of low-nutrient management.

It favours unimproved acid or neutral grassland, and are most plentiful in western Britain and particularly in Wales. 

Did you know?

There are two Parrot Waxcap species that are recognised: Gliophorus psittacinus and Gliophorus perplexa; the latter was previously considered to be a mere variety. 

 

 

Other Species

Oak moss
with little tiny branches almost like a a lot of green tiny deer antlers

Oak moss

Evernia prunastri

Fanfare of trumpets lichen

Fanfare of trumpets lichen

Ramalina fastigiata 

Shaggy strap lichen
Shaggy Strap Lichen

Shaggy strap lichen

Ramalina farinacea

Violet Coral

Clavaria zollingeri

Violet coloured fungus with branches looking like coral on a green grassy area.

How to identify

Fruiting BodyCoral shaped and of a distinctive purple-violet colour
Fruiting body size3-10cm tall and up to 8cm across.
Individual stems are typically 4-7mm in diameter at the base,
branching upwards and outwards
SporesWhite

Where to find them?

Violet Coral (Clavaria zollingeri) is a rare species in Britain found in unimproved grassland. It is usually solitary, but can occur in small groups.

Did you know?

It is listed as vulnerable across Europe on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.

Other Species

Oak moss
with little tiny branches almost like a a lot of green tiny deer antlers

Oak moss

Evernia prunastri

Fanfare of trumpets lichen

Fanfare of trumpets lichen

Ramalina fastigiata 

Shaggy strap lichen
Shaggy Strap Lichen

Shaggy strap lichen

Ramalina farinacea

Snowy Waxcap

Cuphophyllus virgineus

How to identify:

CapIvory white sometimes with a slight yellow tinge. Young snowy waxcaps have convex caps (more pointed) but these flatten with age. Often they have a slight umbo (raised area in the centre of the cap). Greasy texture.
Cap Diameter5- 7cm
GillsDecurrent gills (gills extend slightly down the stem), gills are widely spread. Brighter white than the cap but become more ivory in colour as they age
StemSlender and white, sometimes a little curved
StemSlightly greasy to touch, feels waxy when crushed.
SporesWhite

 

 

Where to find them?

Snowy Waxcaps (Cuphophyllus virgineus) can be found in parkland, garden lawns, churchyards and pastures around autumn time.

Did you know?

One of the most widely recorded waxcaps in unfertilised grassland. A variable species which includes varieties having pale buff-brown colours on the cap. Snowy waxcaps are a little more hardy than other waxcap species.

Don’t mistake them for….

The  Cedarwood Waxcap (similar white colour with distinctive smell of woof chippings).

Other Species

Oak moss
with little tiny branches almost like a a lot of green tiny deer antlers

Oak moss

Evernia prunastri

Fanfare of trumpets lichen

Fanfare of trumpets lichen

Ramalina fastigiata 

Shaggy strap lichen
Shaggy Strap Lichen

Shaggy strap lichen

Ramalina farinacea

Fibrous Waxcap

Hygrocybe intermedia 

Orange waxcap with pointed cap in grass

How to identify:

CapBright orange and can be quite large. Conical, flattening with age, umbonate. Texture quite unique, with coarse scales, like wet velvet. The edge is irregular and splits with age. 
Cap diameter 5-11 cm
GillsPale to bright yellow
StemSimilar colour to cap, but sometimes more yellow and white showing. Very fibrous also. 
FleshPale yellow
SporesWhite

 

Where to find them?

The Fibrous Waxcap (Hygrocybe intermedia) is an uncommon to occasional find in most of Britain and Ireland except in some parts of Wales, where it is more frequently recorded. Most often seen in unimproved grassland and, occasionally, in sand-dune systems. 

Did you know?

The bright right orange (with hints of yellow) cap, fades and sometimes blackening with age.

Don’t mistake it with..

The Blackening Waxcap

Other Species

Oak moss
with little tiny branches almost like a a lot of green tiny deer antlers

Oak moss

Evernia prunastri

Fanfare of trumpets lichen

Fanfare of trumpets lichen

Ramalina fastigiata 

Shaggy strap lichen
Shaggy Strap Lichen

Shaggy strap lichen

Ramalina farinacea

Big Blue Pinkgill

Entoloma bloxamii

Months

Season

Colour

Habitat

A chunky blue mushroom laid out on grass

How to identify

CapA distinctive blue-grey colour when fresh. Conical at first
becoming convex and developing an umbo (a raised area in the centre of the mushroom cap)
Cap diameterTo 10cm
GillsWhite, becoming salmon pink, and broadly attached.
StemColour as cap, sometimes paler at the base, and fibrillose
Flesh
SporesBrownish/pink

 

Where to find them?

A very rare find, Big Blue Pinkgill Entoloma bloxamii grows in unfertilised, long-established grasslands, usually on neutral or calcareous soils

Did you know?

In 2019 it was listed as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List in the UK, and a large area of mainland Europe.

With thanks to Debbie Evans for our image.

 

Other Species

String-of-sausages lichen

String-of-sausages lichen

Meadow WaxCap
Apricot mushroom with flat top

Meadow WaxCap

Hygrocybe pratensis

Pink Ballerina Waxcap

Porpolomopsis calytriformis 

Months

Season

Colour

Habitat

Pink waxcap fungi growing in short green lawn

How to identify:

CapPale pink, fading with age. Conical at first then spreading and splitting. 
Cap Diameter2 – 7 cm across 
Gills Pale pink when young, becoming paler 
StemsWhite
FleshN/A
SporesWhite

 

 

Where to find them?

The Pink Ballerina Waxcap (Porpolomopsis calytriformis) is uncommon and localised in Britain and Ireland.

Due to favouring unimproved acid or neutral grassland it is more often seen in western Britain and particularly in Wales, sometimes in churchyards but more often on sheep-grazed acid grassland in the hills. 

Did you know?

Commonly referred to as the Ballerina Waxcap, because of the way the pink cap flares out and splits like a tutu or pirouetting dancer.  

The Ballerina Waxcap is on the The International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (ICNU) Red List. At present it is a decreasing species and listed as vulnerable.

Don’t mistake it with…

The Meadow Waxcap.

 

Other Species

String-of-sausages lichen

String-of-sausages lichen

Meadow WaxCap
Apricot mushroom with flat top

Meadow WaxCap

Hygrocybe pratensis