18 members and guests attended our Fungus Foray at Derrynoid Forest on Saturday afternoon 18^th October 2025. We were led by Jackie Arrell. We were very lucky to get a completely dry Saturday afternoon in some unsettled weather.

There had been a recent prolonged wet and unseasonably warm period of weather which led to a profusion of fungi this year. This is in contrast to last year when we had a dearth of fungi due to a prolonged dry spell in September 2023.

It is also a remarkable year for the profusion of acorns which were dropping everywhere and drumming on the roofs of our cars as they fell.

Jackie kept finding fungi in the most obscure places, so it was some time until we managed to leave the car park!

Throughout the afternoon Jackie found 42 species of fungi. 

He also described the largest living organism in the world, that is honey fungus in Oregon which has killed over 2,000 acres of forest and by genetic testing has been shown to be a single organism estimated to be several thousand years old.

Hairy curtain crust                                             Honey fungus

All intrigued by the porcelain fungus and the common funnel above

Orange peel fungus found among the acorns at the car park as we were leaving

The list of fungi identified at Derrynoid Forest

wrinkled club

pestle puffball

hairy curtain crust

honey fungus

clustered toughshank

common funnel

wood blewit

lemon disco

yellow  club

snowy waxcap

meadow coral 

mycena

bog bell

sycamore tarspot

beech milkcap

crystal brain

honey fungus with heavy growth of mould on it.

amethyst deceiver

crested coral

poison pie

charcoal burner

brown mottlegill

elastic saddle

buttercap

clouded agaric

porcelain fungus

common bonnet

beech tarcrust

beech woodwort

black bulgar

turkey tail

orange peel

beech jellydisc

candlesnuff

beechwood sickener

false deathcap

twisted deceiver

horse mushroom

sulphur tuft

sulphur knight

ochre brittlegill

twig parachute

On the way round Jackie also pointed out this common spangled gall wasp on the back of an oak leaf and later a cherry gall wasp also on the back of an oak leaf.

Common spangled gall wasp                    Cherry gall wasp 

Trip report by Ernest Hunter