During October 2014 I returned again to one of my special haunts, Exmouth, Devon.
My previous visit during February 2014 was amidst a series of severe Winter Storms.
This time the weather was kinder, and was pleased to find the hotel roof fixed (no green covering on the
roof ), though I did spend time dodging heavy rain showers. The sand dunes washed away during February were still absent and the sea looked flat, compared to the swirling, high mass previously.
On my final day, I visited the Donkey Sanctuary at Ottery St. Mary, nr Sidmouth, Devon. Somewhere I'd been meaning to visit for years and also the prospect of lots of donkey dung and meadows enticed me as dung, meadows and straw are favourites for some fungi!
What a lovely place to visit. Enveloped in a peaceful aura, 500 donkeys are currently resident at this Sanctuary. It has its own hospital and vets to tend to these donkeys who are there to relax (after working jolly hard) for the rest of their lives. On a misty morning it looks quite biblical.
On a walk along a meadow running down to the coast I photographed a fungi that I thought at the time might be some sort of waxcap. The texture obviously felt and looked waxy. It was ochraceous and had particularly decurrent gills. Solitary in dewy grass. The cap being up to 8 cm and rather wavy at the margin edge.
On my return I identified it as Meadow Waxcap Hygrocybe pratensis.
I did also find a fungus growing in horse dung! Tan brown with a shiny cap and a long curved stem.
Todate, I've not yet managed to identify it.
These images can now be seen on www.fungiworld.co.uk on Browse 5.
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