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I haven't been doing as much mycologizing as entomologizing recently. And on top of that, I've just been busy busy busy. So the cool item I'm posting has little to do with mycology or Alabama. If I may direct your attention to the bottom of the page (press "end" to take the short cut), you'll see a nifty little device for showing off all the states or countries you've visited, as I demonstrate. You can then click on this link, or the one at the bottom to create one for yourself.

I did get to see some interesting bugs and fungi on a trip to Florida last month, and hopefully I'll get some pix up soon.

Why didn't I eat the boletes?

Howdy y'all,
It's been a while, but here's an interesting cautionary tale which may explain why I didn't eat the boletes. As the wise old saw goes, "there are old mycologists, and there are bold mycologists, but there are few old, bold mycologists".

About Alabama and Fungi

Finally I've found a website that refers to Alabama and fungi which is not this one. Actually, it refers to one of my favorite fungally-derived products, beer. Not that I have anything against bread, I guess you could say I like fermentation in many forms (though definitely not all forms). Anyway, this site has some information on some of Alabama's rather obscure blue laws. For example, I didn't know that beer had to be below 6% alcohol, or that you can only buy containers smaller than 1 pint (and I'm not sure where kegs fit into the whole picture). These folks are trying to get the laws changed so we can buy half-litres of barleywine here, instead of in Georgia.

Happy Birthday, Hank Williams

That would be Hank Senior, of course. Enjoy some of your favorite Hank Williams tunes today. Among my favorites are "Crazy heart", "Lonesome Whistle (I Heard That)", "Kaw-liga", "Setting the Woods on Fire", and "Jambalaya on the Bayou". As far as I know, Hank never sang about fungi, which is a shame, but what can you do?

Boletes!

Howdy, Y'all.
The rain has delivered! While in the field, I came upon these boletes, which I'm pretty sure are Boletus rubellus. I'm not sure if I'm going to try eating them, given what the mushroom
expert has to say about this species. Arora says this species may be edible, but as the old saw goes, "there are old mycologists, and there are bold mycologists, but there are few old, bold mycologists".
These particular mushrooms were in a pine plantation with some oaks mixed in, which has a pretty high water table. The stipes (stems) are pretty thin compared to other boletes, which can be quite bulbous. And, of course, there's the blue stain reaction, as demonstrated at the top right, there.

Boletes are ectomycorrhizal, which explains why they tend to be found only in certain types of forests.

Rained upon

Hey y'all,
Just been out in the field again, looking at tree crowns. It's been rainy off and on, and I've been waiting to see all that rain promises... I'm really hoping to find some boletes, especially ones that have been mycoparasitized by Hypomyces spp. to send to my good myconerd buddy Greg.
While I haven't seen the boletes, I did see a few things out there, some Marasmius, some quince rust on hawthorn, lots of earthstars, and lots of other typical fungi that one has to resign oneself to in periods of prolonged dryness. Hopefully, I be able to get some pix up soon.

Guess who probably won't be blogging anytime soon

A little more Alabamiana. Harper Lee, author of "To Kill a Mockingbird", just made a public statement for the first time since, well, probably before I was born. Congrats to her and Hank Aaron for these plaudits.