Freaky Fungus Foray

Day 361: As I walked out the door for my lunch break yesterday, I announced to selected colleagues that I was going on a Freaky Fungus Foray with the specific goal of seeing if Ramaria araiospora rubella had popped up under the encouragement of recent rains. This brilliant red version of Coral is uncommon, and the holotype (the specimen from which the species description was derived) was taken two miles south of Elbe, not far from Mount Rainier National Park. I have found it in only one location in the Park, and after first discovering it several years ago, I did not see it again until last year. On yesterday's walk, I was rewarded with two emerging specimens, each about three inches on the longest dimension, found in the same drainage where I had seen it previously. I patrolled further up the drainage, but found no other examples.