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Nyholmiella gymnostoma
As the name suggests, Aspen Bristle-moss is an Aspen Populus tremula specialist, it grows exclusively on Aspen tree bark. While you may see Aspen trees occasionally across the country, Aspen dominated woodland with a range of young and older trees is very rare. These sites provide a home for this and other rare species of epiphyte (species which grow on the surface of other plants).
Aspen Bristle-moss is only known to grow at three sites in the entire UK. All three sites are in and around the Cairngorms in Scotland.
Aspen Bristle-moss can be spotted all throughout the year. Though given that it only grows at three sites, it is a particularly tricky one to find.
Mosses and liches which grow as epiphytes are often easiest to spot in winter months as they remain green all year round, are often fresher and brighter when wet, and are not obscured by summer vegetation.
This beautiful, tiny moss was believed to be extinct in the UK in 2000, but a lucky find in 2003 sparked a drive to hunt for it again. It was quickly discovered at three new sites, but no further patches have been found since.
Our new Resilience and Recovery, Helping Rare Species Adapt to a Changing World project is currently looking at this and other species of rare Aspen epiphyte. The project will investigate whether these often overlooked species are truly as rare as they seem, or just under-recorded.
Read more about our work with Aspen Bristle-moss here.
Photos taken by Gus Routledge
Moneses uniflora
One-flowered Wintergreen can be a hard one to spot. As well as being very rare, it’s a small, single-flowered plant that grows on the forest floor, which can make it harder to see.
It is a distinctive plant however. Each plant has just 1 stem, and 1 flower. The flower heads are white, with 5 petals and 5 filaments with anthers, leaves at the base of the plant form in a rosette.
This pretty plant is very rare. In the UK, it can only be found in pine woods in North East Scotland.
One-flowered Wintergreen only occurs at specific sites, and is often isolated to an area a few tens of metres across in a large and apparently suitable woodland.
As part of a possibly global decline, we have recorded it going locally extinct at more than half of the sites it was recorded at, since 2000.
We have been working with this plant up in the Cairngorms and have had some break throughs in understanding it better. Read more about our work with One-flowered Wintergreen here.
We have been working hard to save this tiny wildflower in Scotland. In Autumn 2023 we translocated 109 individual One-flowered Wintergreen rosettes from two sites in to RSPB Abernethy, reinforcing a tiny relic population.
The translocation was a huge success, with a 70 per cent survival success rate one year on. Read the full story here.
We are currently continuing our work with the species through our Resilience and Recovery, Helping Rare Species Adapt to a Changing World project. Follow our journey here.
Two delicate One-flowered Wintergreen plants appear on the forest floor, taken by Keilidh Ewan
A One-Flowered Wintergreen bloom droops it’s head toward the forest floor, photograph taken by Keilidh Ewan
A close up of a One-flowered Wintergreen flower head taken by Keilidh Ewan
A One-flowered Wintergreen plant is photographed on the forest floor next to other small woodland plants photograph taken by Keilidh Ewan
A pretty One-flowered Wintergreen wildflower grows on the forest floor bathed in sunlight, taken by Keilidh Ewan
Three One-flowered Wintergreen plants can be seen in bud, taken by Keilidh Ewan
A close-up image of a One-flowered Wintergreen flowerhead, taken by Keilidh Ewan
A close-up image of a One-flowered Wintergreen taken by Keilidh Ewan
Eranthis hyemalis
Winter Aconite is an easy one to keep an eye out for, as it has beautiful bright yellow flowers that help it stand out. Keep your eyes on the ground as it’s a small plant, that grows up to 15cm.
Underneath its pretty flower, it has a whorl of leaf-like bracts that a form a ruffly collar.
This pretty plant is especially common in the east of England, and can be found in parks and woodlands.
Winter Aconite however is not a native wildflower. It was introduced in the 16th century as a garden plant. Now centuries later, it is considered naturalised.
Winter Aconite has a number of different nicknames. In some regions, the pretty yellow flowers have been nicknamed ‘choirboys’. It’s said that the name came from the ruffle of leaves that surround the flower head. In other regions, they have been known as ‘Christmas-rose’ or ‘New Year’s Gift’, owing to their mid-winter appearance.
Ilex aquifolium
Holly can grow very tall, up to 15m. It’s an evergreen tree so stays in leaf all year round, with sharp, spiny leaves that are thick, glossy and dark green in colour. You can see it flowering between May and August with small white flowers, each with four petals. In winter it fruits with shiny red berries.
Holly is a native plant that can be found all over the British Isles as well as western and central Europe. It prefers to grow in hedgerows, scrubland, woodlands and wooded pastures, and prefers acidic soils.
Holly is a common decoration in our homes around the festive season and was in fact thought to be lucky by many cultures. It was believed that Holly could bring you luck, protection and improve your fortunes. However there is also bad luck associated with Holly. It’s believed to be bad luck if you cut down a whole Holly tree.
There’s many myths and legends associated with Holly that span across many countries, cultures and religions. One Christian-based tale suggests that the Holly once had white berries, but when Jesus was on the cross, his blood dripped onto the plants and stained the berries red forever.
Perhaps the most famous folklore is that of the Holly King and the Oak King, in which many iterations, the two are brothers. The story goes that the Oak King was the ruler of the summer months, while the Holly King was the lord of the winter.
The telling of the story varies, but it is generally believed that on the equinoxes of autumn and spring an epic battle begins. The winner is declared by the signs of the season. When spring begins to bloom, the Oak King has taken the crown. He rules throughout summer, but gets weaker after the summer solstice. By the time the autumn equinox approaches, the Holly King makes his move and the fight begins again. The changing leaves signal the Holly King has indeed won the fight and becomes lord throughout the winter, until the cycle starts again.
Sarcoscypha austriaca
Scarlet Elfcup can be found in damp, shady areas, growing on dead hardwood on the woodland floor. They are often surrounded by moss and can be found throughout Britain and Ireland.
The name “elfcup” comes from folklore, where woodland elves were said to drink or bathe in water collecting in the cups of the fungus.
The Scarlet Elfcup is often confused with the Ruby Elfcup Sarcoscypha coccinea. It requires a microscope to tell the difference between these two species!
Fungi underpin the health of our environment and are key to resolving the climate, ecological and societal challenges we face. Your donation could help increase understanding of fungi and get them the support they need.
Amanita muscaria
Fly Agaric can be found in woodlands and along woodland edges. They often reoccur in the same place over multiple years and are widespread throughout Britain and Ireland.
The name Fly Agaric refers to the fungus having been used as an insecticide.
If the white spots wash off the Fly agaric cap, it can be mistaken for red Russula species such as the Beechwood sickener Russula nobilis. There are also other Amanita species which look similar to the Fly Agaric but lack the distinctive red cap (e.g. The Blusher, Amanita rubescens)
Armillaria species
The term Honey fungus actually refers to several closely related species, all within the Armillaria group. The two most common Honey fungus species are Armillaria mellea and Armillaria gallica, however there are a total of seven Honey fungus species found in the UK. These fungi are often well known by gardeners, as they can cause severe disease in trees and shrubs.
As well as producing fruit bodies, Honey fungus forms distinctive bootlace-like structures called “rhizomorphs”. The tough leathery rhizomorphs are formed of bunches of fungal hyphae (root-like threads), and can commonly be seen underneath the bark of trees which have been infected with Honey fungus. Rhizomorphs vary from pale yellow and red, becoming brown or even black as they age.
Honey fungus grows in dense clusters on dead or dying wood, and can be found in woodlands, gardens, and parks.
The different species of Honey fungus can be easily confused with each other.
Armillaria mellea are bioluminescent, their gills glow in the dark! The glow from Honey fungus is very weak however, and is usually too faint to be seen by the naked eye in a woodland environment.
This autumn, help Plantlife find Britain’s most colourful and important fungi – waxcaps.
Laccaria amethystina
Often occurring in large, crowded groups and usually found growing amongst leaf litter in coniferous or deciduous woods, commonly with Beech, Silver Birch or Oak.
The name ‘amethyst’ refers to the purple colouring of the young mushrooms and Laccaria means ‘lacquered’, referring to the shiny appearance of the fresh caps.
Laetiporus sulphureus
This fungus is a common find in woodlands across the UK. They are found mainly on deciduous trees, for example oak, sweet chestnut and beech. Often they are quite high up on the tree trunk, so its worth casting your eyes upwards!
The flesh of this bracket fungus has a texture similar to cooked chicken, hence the common name!
The Giant polypore (Meripilus gigantus) can form similar bracket structures. However, the underside of Giant polypore turns black when damaged, which cannot be seen in Chicken of the Woods.
Chicken of the Woods, photo taken by John Bury
Auricularia auricula-judae
This fungus is commonly found on dead or dying wood. While it’s easiest to spot between January and April, it can be found all year round.
There are several other species of jelly fungi:
This fungus was previously only found on Elder trees. Over the last 50 years, it has spread to a much wider range of host tree species, and can now be found on at least 16 species of tree!
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