Black Elfin Saddle - Tumblr Posts

Black elfin saddle - Helvella lacunosa

Another post for the spooky season . . . the black elfin saddle's chambered stipe gives it a skeletal and a somewhat spooky appearance. It might be found in burnt or disturbed grounds.

Fruitbody

The cap is 2 to 4 centimetres across and about 4 to 10 centimetres high.¹ The saddle-shaped cap is irregularly lobed and convoluted, attached to the stipe in several places and has a black to dark brown colour.² It is the smooth outer surface of the cap that bears spores, while the inner surface is sterile.¹

The stipe is 1.5 to 4 centimeters long and 5 to 15 millimetres thick. It might have a whitish colour when young, but soon turns a gray to dark gray colour. The stipe is deeply and ornately ribbed and pocketed, the ribs are rounded, or sometimes sharp and double-edged.²

The flesh of the fruitbody is thin, brittle and chambered.²

Microscopic features

The asci (seen on the bottom left) are typically 340 μm long x 16 μm diameter, each ascus contains eight spores. The paraphyses are about 5 μm diameter, cylindrical¹ and hyaline.² Some paraphyses have capitata apices.¹

The spores (seen on the bottom right) are smooth², ellipsoidal, 15 - 19 x 10 - 13 μm and hyaline. The spore print is white.¹

Ecology

Black elfin saddles can typically be found among leaf litter in all types of woodland, they are often found on burnt ground or in otherwise disturbed woodland clearings.¹ The species is probably mycorrhizal, growing alone, scattered or gregariously.² Helvella lacunosa grows between summer and autumn.¹

Distribution

This species can be found throughout Britain and the throughout the mainland of Europe, it can also be found in North America.¹

Note: the links to the images are in the image discription.

References

1.

2.

Mutuals

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