Oozing excess water
Today, I’m taking a break from uploading images from Waterton Lakes National Park and instead sharing three photos from yesterday (23 July 2015), closer to home. Five of us spent the day botanizing Darryl Teskey’s farm southwest of Calgary and southwest of Millarville (about a 40-minute drive from the city). these was my first visit, and I’m so pleased I attended because I would have missed several mushrooms, including these and two additional Red-belted polypore / Fomitopsis pinicola (?) with their lovely guttation droplets. Thank you so much, Karel, for inviting me over to look at them. made my day!
“Some fungus display an unusual phenomena known as guttation, in which they release beads of moisture. Several polypores, like Fomitopsis pinicola, generate liquids that resemble tears, giving the impression that the fungus is weeping. Or maybe you’re sweating. Other species create colored drips that resemble milk, tar, or even blood.
“Guttation” is a term used in botany to describe the process by which plants expel excess water via droplets from their leaves. This is such a prevalent trait on some mushrooms that it can be used to identify them.
Fortunately, the rain held off until we began traveling back to Calgary. There were a lot of black clouds, reminding me of the tornado that swept across Calgary (including my village) the day before (22 July 2015).
Our trek brought us over meadow and through forest, which was perilous due to the numerous fallen logs that were frequently barely visible. I’ve never seen so many small Skipper butterflies – there must have been hundreds, if not thousands, of these bright orange beauties flying or perching on blooms of every colour. Our goal, as always, was to identify and record everything we observed, including wildflowers, trees, grasses, birds, insects, and fungi.
Our leader then produces a comprehensive list of all our discoveries, which is then forwarded to the landowner, along with any images we may take. Always a win-win situation, since the landowner now has a much better understanding of what is on his property, and we have a fantastic day. This summer, with so many botanizing adventures like this, as well as two 3-day visits to Waterton Lakes National Park, I’ve fallen behind on the images I need to edit and email!
