Bird's Nest Fungus

By -
I can't even tell you how excited I am about our most recent‪ backyard nature discovery‬.  I've always wanted to see Bird's Nest Fungus, and we've looked for it in many different places on our travels. The last place I expected to see it for the first time was in our own backyard!


It's not hard to see how this fungus of Lilliputian proportion gets its name. And while the cups do look like tiny bird's nests, they're actually the fruiting body of the fungus. Inside, the "eggs," are the peridioles that contain the spores which are the basis of its reproduction.

NATURE IS THE COOLEST THING EVER!! :-)



I am not ashamed to admit that I sort of lost my sh*t when I discovered these. First, I ran to get Kenn, and then I made an emergency fungus discovery phone call to my best friend Tiffanie. Now listen, you know you're picking your friends right when they heed your emergency fungus discovery call and immediately jump in the car to race over!



These remarkable little bird nests in miniature are yet another powerful (and cosmically-cool!) reminder that the natural world never disappoints. Get outside. Exercise your curiosity. Feed your soul. #BackyardNatureDiscoveries

Comments

  1. Cynthia CageAugust 13, 2016 at 11:20 PM

    Very cool!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AnonymousAugust 29, 2016 at 2:40 PM

      I just discovered some in my garden pond area.. Actually didn't know what I was seeing, and it was concerning at first..(lol) which led me to google! glad to know its all good..

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Which Way for ABA?

By -
From a state of contemplation, Kenn writes: The American Birding Association (ABA) has been an important part of my life ever since I joined, at the age of 16, back in the 1970s. The ABA was a brand-new organization then, and it served a unique role in connecting the active birders of the U.S. and Canada. Its little bimonthly magazine, Birding, was a treasure trove for me as a teenager, giving me tips on bird-finding and bird identification that I wouldn’t have known about in any other way. When I started traveling, as a hitch-hiking, teenaged birder, the ABA connected me with other enthusiasts and with prime birding hotspots, and helped to put me on a course as a professional naturalist. In subsequent years I was involved with ABA in many ways. I taught bird I.D. workshops at many of their conventions, and later I began giving evening keynote talks at these events; for a while, I had spoken at more ABA conventions than anyone else. I wrote dozens of pieces for Birding magazine, and
Read more

From Kenn's Drawing Table: Great Black Hawk

By -
Image
Kenn Writes: Some bird painters can put down just a few lines on canvas or paper and then start painting. I respect that, but it doesn't work for me; I have to have a detailed idea of where things are going before I start to lay in any color. I recently started a portrait of an immature Great Black Hawk, and the basic drawing evolved over a couple of days. On the left here is the subfinal drawing. After putting it aside for a while, I decided to change the position of the head, make the bill a little thicker, and make a few other adjustments. I'll probably make more changes in the process of painting, but at least the foundation is set in advance.
Read more