pcpalmer3's Journal

All that rain has produced results! Sigrid just documented the first Russula of the GW season (https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/81201435). And one of my favorite stumps has taken on another flush of beautiful Panus blooms (https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/74191117). Things are starting to happen. Rain and warmer temperatures will encourage more appearances.

I’ve spent the morning researching this lovely bolete I ran into on Friday (6/11). I'm also experimenting with this iNaturalist feature I just discovered that allows journal entries associated with a specific observation. Crazy!

Setting the scene: I was traversing the cemetery with a friend and decided to swing by a Dell Water area I don’t check frequently but, because it was on the way and because @sigridjakob had mentioned some fine mycorrhizal finds, I wandered through.

A remote rise above the pond, this area is dominated by two mature hardwoods: a large Quercus rubra (northern red oak) and a veteran Fagus sylvatica ( European beech). The F. sylvatica hosts a couple of saprobes (https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/63532429 -- Ganoderma sessile and https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/19790070 -- Pleurotus ostreatus). The Q. rubra supports a lively variety of amanitas, boletes, and russulas. This is clearly one of the mycorrhizal hotspots of the cemetery and deserves special treatment and attention for the Fungi Phenology project.

There are a couple of rabbit holes I've explored based on this observation that I might as well share, since I have the space and the inclination.

First, this flush of B. subvelutipes is clearly associated with the Fagus, not the Quercus. Maybe there is root overlap, but it doesn't look like it to me. The bolete is on the north side of the Fagus which is opposite the Quercus. Michael Kuo describes this bolete under a variety of hardwoods, but not beech. (https://www.mushroomexpert.com/boletus_subvelutipes.html). The Bolete Filter, a very cool synoptic key that @tombigelow referenced in the NYMS Advanced ID session, shows that B. subvelutipes is only associated with conifers (https://boletes.wpamushroomclub.org/product/boletus-subvelutipes/#lightbox/5/). That is wrong and deserves correction.

Second, B. subvelutipes has a strong history in Green-Wood. Check out https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?place_id=123662&subview=map&taxon_id=125367 for a mapping of all the documented finds. My favorite is https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/53541293 -- thanks @novapatch!

Third, in the article referenced above Michael Kuo makes an argument for focusing attention on this beautiful and taxonomically complex bolete. Calling all project members -- let's document other colonies of B. subvelutipes within GW. I have my sample currently drying in the dehydrator and plan to submit for sequencing using our FunDiS grant. Anyone with specimens from other parts of GW, collect and contact me so we can begin mapping the distribution and ecology.

Congratulations to Jon (@notdog ) for locating our first Amanita of the season (https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/82456616).

Friday I found my first Boletus subvelutipes (https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/82591114) and posted a Journal entry about it (https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/pcpalmer3/53247-notes-on-my-first-boletus-subvelutipes).

I'm hoping we can record more B. subvelutipes as part of the project. One of the project goals is to map out the colonies of certain key mycorrhizals which should allow us to track the timing and conditions of their appearances over time. Ideally we will taxonomically ground each colony with DNA sequencing. The project has received grants from FunDiS for sequencing sample to support that effort. It is even possible that we will develop the capability of generating our own DIY sequences -- more to come.

Now that we are finally seeing the steady appearance of a variety of early summer fungi, I calling for a loose collective popup GW mycoblitz this Saturday morning. We will meet at the PPW (not the Arch) entrance at 10AM and spend a few minutes reviewing observation techniques. Beginners are enthusiastically encouraged to attend -- if we have the right mix we will buddy-up beginners with experienced searchers. We will meet back at PPW at noon to review our finds.

Hope to see you there. If you have any questions or concerns, reach out to Sigrid (@sigridjakob, sigridjakob@gmail.com ) or me (@pcpalmer3, pcpalmer3@gmail.com).