Ghost Fungus

Description:

The first photo shows a beautiful white spore print of this fungus. Mature caps were about 120 mm wide, funnel shaped with a deep dark centre. Frilly curled margins showed stark white gills that ran down a pale short stipe.

Habitat:

Growing in a large cluster from a damp tree stump. Spotted by the road side in a dam eucalyptus forest.

Notes:

This is something I wanted to see for a long time and it happened when I brought one of these mushrooms back home for a spore print. I placed the mushroom in a very dark spot in the house and witnessed the dull green glow, which perfectly outlined that part of the cap, brighter where the gills were most crowded. As it was a long drive home, I suspect it had lost some of the luminescence which is said to be caused by the reaction between fungal enzymes and oxygen. I would love to see these at night, in the wild and on a moonless night. This is a very poisonous species. When young, they look much like Oyster mushrooms and have been mistakenly collected by some for food. The bioluminescence is a giveaway ! Oyster mushrooms don't glow in the dark. Family: Marasmiaceae