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Aspen Bristle-moss

Nyholmiella gymnostoma

Close up of the detailed Aspen Bristle-moss growing on Aspen tree bark

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).

Where it grows

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.

Close up image of the beautiful bright green Aspen Bristle-moss growing out of grey coloured tree bark

Best Time to See it

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. 

Something You Might Not Know

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

Other Species

Lesser Butterfly Orchid

Lesser Butterfly Orchid

Scrambled Egg Lichen
Scrambled Egg Lichen

Scrambled Egg Lichen

One-flowered Wintergreen

Moneses uniflora

Months

Season

Colour

Habitat

Close up of a delicate One-flowered Wintergreen flower. The five white petals stand out against the forest floor.

How to identify:

Annual/Perennial/BiennialEvergreen perennial
Height15cm
Flower typeSingle , white, 12-20mm
LeavesLight green leaves which are oval shaped
StemsGrows in rosettes with light green stem for single flower heads

 

Three One-flowered Wintergreen plants can be seen amongst the fallen leaves on the forest floor. They have not yet bloomed and the individual buds one each plant hang like white bells.

How to Spot

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.

Where to Spot

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.

Did you Know?

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.

Other Species

Lesser Butterfly Orchid

Lesser Butterfly Orchid

Scrambled Egg Lichen
Scrambled Egg Lichen

Scrambled Egg Lichen

Winter Aconite

Eranthis hyemalis

Months

Season

Colour

Habitat

Pretty yellow Winter Aconite flowers site on a woodland floor. The bright yellow blooms stand out again a floor covered in fallen leaves.

How to Identify Winter Aconite:

Annual/Perennial/BiennialPerennial
Height15cm
Flower typeSingle flowers with 6 petals
LeavesLeaves spread from central point and are split into many sections
StemsGreen stem

 

Pretty yellow Winter Aconite flowers site on a woodland floor. The bright yellow blooms stand out again a floor covered in fallen leaves.

How to Spot Winter Aconite

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.

Where to Spot Winter Aconite

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.

Facts About Winter Aconite

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.

Other Species

Lesser Butterfly Orchid

Lesser Butterfly Orchid

Scrambled Egg Lichen
Scrambled Egg Lichen

Scrambled Egg Lichen

How to Identify:

Annual/Perennial/BiennialEvergreen
Height15m
Flower typeWhite with 4 petals
LeavesThick, spiny and shiny
StemsGrey smooth bark with green branches

 

A Holly tree with dark shiny leaves and clusters of red berries, covered in snow in the winter cold

How to Spot

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.

Where to Spot

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 in Folklore

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.

 

 

Other Species

Lesser Butterfly Orchid

Lesser Butterfly Orchid

Scrambled Egg Lichen
Scrambled Egg Lichen

Scrambled Egg Lichen

Scarlet Elfcup

Sarcoscypha austriaca

Scarlet Elfcup

How to Identify Scarlet Elfcup

CapSmooth red cup or disc shape rather than a cap. The felty surface of the outside of the cup is paler than the inside.
Cup diameter2-7cm
GillsNone
StemShort stem, up to 3cm long, often covered by moss or leaf litter.
SporesWhite
Scarlet Elfcup

Where to find:

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.

Did you know:

The name “elfcup” comes from folklore, where woodland elves were said to drink or bathe in water collecting in the cups of the fungus.

Don’t mistake it with…

The Scarlet Elfcup is often confused with the Ruby Elfcup Sarcoscypha coccinea. It requires a microscope to tell the difference between these two species!

Other Species

Fly Agaric

Amanita muscaria

How to identify Fly Agaric

CapRed or sometimes orange in colour with white spots, which are remnants of the protective veil. They can sometimes be washed away by the rain.
Cap diameter10cm-20 cm when mature
GillsBegin white but become a pale yellow over time. The gills are free from the stem
StemWhite stems around 10cm-25cm long
SporesWhite

 

 

Where to find them?

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.

Did you know?

The name Fly Agaric refers to the fungus having been used as an insecticide.

Don’t mistake it with?

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)

Other Species

Honey Fungus

Armillaria species

Months

Season

Colour

Habitat

Honey fungus, Armillaria mellea, photographed on a dead branch in a woodland. The pale creamy brown of the fungus stands out against bright green mosses that cover the branch

How to Identify Honey Fungus

CapOchre-brown, usually darker towards the centre, and covered with fine brown scales
Cap diameter4cm – 10cm
GillsWhite, darkening with age. Often partially covered by a thin white membrane or “veil”
StemSimilar in colour to the cap, sometimes bulbuous towards the base. Will often have a residual white ring around the stem from the formation of the “veil”
SporesWhite

 

About the Honey Fungus

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. 

Where to Find Them?

Honey fungus grows in dense clusters on dead or dying wood, and can be found in woodlands, gardens, and parks. 

Don’t Mistake it With

The different species of Honey fungus can be easily confused with each other. 

Did you Know?

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. 

Other Species

Amethyst Deceiver

Laccaria amethystina

Months

Season

Colour

Habitat

Two fungi growing next to eachother on the forest floor, a bright purple Amethyst Deceiver leans over the top of a creamy coloured Russula sp

How to Identify Amethyst Deceiver

CapDeep purple, fading to lilac and sometimes white in dry weather
Size2cm – 7cm
GillsWidely spaced, and similar in colour to the cap
Stem5mm – 10mm in diameter and 5cm – 10cm tallIt is hollow, tough and fibrous, often twisted and sometimes flattened; deep purple at first, but becoming paler as the caps fade
SporesWhite

 

Where to find them?

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.   

Don’t mistake it with

  • Older specimens with their pale caps are easily mistaken for the Deceiver Laccaria laccata, but the Amethyst Deceiver can be distinguished by the purple colouring that remains on the gills and the stipe
  • The Lilac Bonnet Mycena pura is another purple-lilac tinged mushroom, but has pale gills, more of a pink appearance, and the stem is not fibrous
  • The Lilac Fibrecap Inocybe geophylla var. lilacina is also similar, but is paler overall and does not have the purpley gills

Did you know?

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. 

Other Species

Chicken of the woods

Laetiporus sulphureus

Chicken of the Woods

How to identify:

BracketsThe fungus is comprised of several  overlapping brackets 
GillsThis bracket fungus does not have gills  
StemIt has no stem
FleshThick yellow-orange flesh which darkens with age. The underside of the brackets have yellow pores, which is the spore-forming surface of the fungus  
SporesWhite

 

Where to find them?

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!  

Did you know?

The flesh of this bracket fungus has a texture similar to cooked chicken, hence the common name!  

Don’t mistake it with…

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. 

Other Species

Jelly Ear

Auricularia auricula-judae

Months

Colour

Habitat

Photograph shows a few Jelly Ear Fungi on tree, that is also covered in moss. The fungi are a dark brown in colour and almost perfectly resemble the shape of a human ear.

How to identify:

CapThis fungus does not have a cap and instead forms ear-shaped structures
Size3 – 10 cms 
GillsThis fungus does not have gills
StemNo stem
FleshBrown, with a distinctive jelly-like texture
SporesWhite

 

Where to find them?

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.

Don’t mistake it with

There are several other species of jelly fungi:

  • The Tripe fungus (Auricularia mesenterica) has a similar ear-like shape but is lighter in colour.
  • Witches butter (Exidia glandulosa) has a dark brown-black colour and texture but does not grow to form the ear-like structures seen in Jelly ears. 

Did you know?

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!  

 

Other Species