Not A Clue!

Day 17: Whatever they are, there are a lot of them growing on the decaying hawthorn stump alongside my prized bioluminescent Carbon Antlers. Something has nibbled the tops of a few caps (mouse, I suspect) and may now be regretting that it failed to heed the most essential advice for mushroomers: "Unless you are 110% sure of the identification, do not eat it." And further, just because another mammal can consume a certain mushroom, it does not necessarily follow that it is safe for a human to eat. Different critters' digestive systems contain different enzymes and can process alkaloids which might be poisonous to a human. For example, deer and elk eat several Amanita species which can cause long-term damage to human livers and kidneys. Some might say that I am over-cautious when it comes to 'shrooms. I remind them that there is a good reason one mycological society referred to its annual dinner as the "Survivors' Banquet."

Xylaria Hypoxylon, Carbon Antlers

Day 3: First of all, conditions have to be perfect for Xylaria hypoxylon to bioluminesce. It can't be too warm or too cold. The humidity has to be just right. And above all, it has to be dark if you want to see it happen. If everything is just Goldilocks-right, a light tap of Carbon Antlers with a small stick or a finger will produce a tiny and brief dot of blue light, or at least that's my experience with the group which fruits on an old hawthorn stump in my back yard. I've only witnessed it a few times (the first, entirely and surprisingly by accident), and have never been able to capture the fairy-lantern will-o'-the-wisp blink with the camera. Despite that, it pleases me to know that I have a bioluminescent fungus so close at hand.

Bioluminescent Species

Day 340: When I first encountered Xylaria hypoxylon (Carbon Antlers) in a wildlife conservation area a few years ago and was looking for information about the species, I discovered that it was bioluminescent. The conservation area was not one I cared to go traipsing about in the dark of night, I figured I'd never get to see the phenomenon for myself. However, last year, I found the same fungus growing on a hawthorn stump in my back yard and was overjoyed when I was able to stimulate a few tiny points of blue-white light by touching the tips with a twig. Once one of the "fairy lights" had been activated and had faded after a few seconds, it could not be induced to glow again. Only a few members of the colony were at the correct stage to produce bioluminescence, and my experiment concluded when they were exhausted. Then summer came and the Xylaria withered and disappeared. Now they are beginning to sprout on the stump again, and if conditions permit (temperature plays a role), I hope to be able to tease them into lighting up again.