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Project Noah Nature School
Clathrus columnatus
Sponge like and very stinky!! (Fruiting Body: 5-15 cm high, consisting of 2-6 curved arms arising separately (not from a shared stem) and joining at the top to form a "roof"; pinkish to reddish or orangish; upper area of inner surfaces at first covered with a foul-smelling, olive brown slime. When young encased in white eggs; the egg tissue creates a white volva around the branch bases when the mushroom matures.-Mushroom Expert.com)
I found growing just underneath some decaying leaves.
This had a pungent odor to it. I raked it up when clearing some decaying leaves but it was really interesting to find.
Thank you everyone for the comments and the favorites! Thanks especially to auntnance 123 for the ID!
You are absolutely right to put it under Fungi! Though, smelly, these are very beautiful. I found some of these when I was visiting my grandmother down in Hilton Head Island, SC. Though the ones I found were a bit more mature than yours:
http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/166...
Spotted on Mar 22, 2013
Submitted on Mar 24, 2013
+2
