THU FRI SAT 09-08-10 There’s a Fungus Amungus

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HunterGKS
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THU FRI SAT 09-08-10 There’s a Fungus Amungus

Post by HunterGKS »

Thursday 09/08

I got back to the woods a little before 7. It was comfortable especially when the breeze kicked up. I saw a fox at 8:32 going east at the end of the lane & another coming back west at 8:54. At 9:02, I spotted 1 on a log to my left. None of these 3 offered a shot. I headed into the woods for a walkabout about 10 & saw 1 at 10:04. I have a feeling the 1st 2 & this 1 were the same bushy as they/it was in the same area. At 10:40, I saw #5 on the side of a tree at the end of the log where I had seen #3. I think those 2 were the same 1. At 3:04, 1 jumped up on a tall stump, jumped down, & was gone. None provided a shot.

I had decided to head in at 5 but caught a flash of red in the brush to my right & kept watch hoping for a shot on a fox. At 4:50, a red literally flew across the opening into the brush on the other side & I packed up & left.


Friday 09/09

Today was a workout day, so I didn’t get into the woods until about 12:30. Almost immediately, nuts started dropping from a nearby shag. I thought it was probably a red as I have never seen foxes drop their nuts for as long as this 1. After about 10 minutes, it started chirring confirming that it was a red. It came down the tree & started hauling them to wherever it was caching them. It went up & started dropping nuts again. I thought hearing all those nuts dropping through the leaves & hitting the ground would be like a dinner bell to the foxes but none answered the bell. Another red showed up & started stealing the cutters nuts. I was hoping the cutter would come down & I would witness a squirrel fight. Last deer season, 1 red had stored a bunch of nuts under the corner of my ground stand & another started hauling the away. It was hilarious watching & listening to those 2 go at it!!

I have to say, watching those reds is like watching Speedy Gonzales on meth. It flat wore me out. I called it a day at 5.

Saturday 09/10

It was really windy & overcast this morning but humid when I got to the woods at 7:15 with a temp of 72. With 1 exception, all the squirrels I have seen have either been on the ground or only a few feet up trees. I was hoping that they would be out & about but I didn’t see anything, no coons, no deer, no reds, & especially no foxes. Where I hunted usually has a lot of blackcaps, nuthatches, & other tweety birds but nada. I gave up at 11 & got to the truck just as it started to sprinkle. I had 2 squirrels to pressure cook, debone, & freeze as well as chores that have gone lacking since the season opened. I won’t get out any more today as THE Ohio State Buckeyes game starts at 3:30.

I have always found fungus interesting with all the shapes, sizes, & colors so decided to take some pics. For some reason, a few are a little blurry. I did notice a slug on one of the fungus but didn’t realize there were several more until I started to size the pics. There are 2 pics of the underside. I had to place the camera on the ground under the fungus so didn’t know how they’d turn out. Not bad. The large stump towards the bottom is where I take spring turkey pics.

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George

YOU KNOW YOU HAVE TO KEEP YOUR BODY STILL. YOUR HEART JUST HASN'T CAUGHT ON.

.17 = NITRO OF THE RIMFIRE WORLD USAF 1969-1973


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GLS
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Re: THU FRI SAT 09-08-10 There’s a Fungus Amungus

Post by GLS »

Some of those white ones may be oyster mushrooms. Some of the brown ones appear to be Turkey Tail Mushrooms. Both are edible if that is what they are. The Turkey Tails can get tough from what I understand when they get older. I am not guaranteeing what they are so I would defer to someone more knowledgeable. I stick to chanterelles as they are the easiest for me to identify. They are also the most readily available in my woods after a good rain. Nice photography. Gil
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Re: THU FRI SAT 09-08-10 There’s a Fungus Amungus

Post by HunterGKS »

Thx Gil. Someone else said possibly oysters also. The only wild 'shrooms I can id are puffballs & morels. I'm too much of a chicken to try any of the others.
George

YOU KNOW YOU HAVE TO KEEP YOUR BODY STILL. YOUR HEART JUST HASN'T CAUGHT ON.

.17 = NITRO OF THE RIMFIRE WORLD USAF 1969-1973


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Re: THU FRI SAT 09-08-10 There’s a Fungus Amungus

Post by GLS »

The first "brown" mushrooms in your spread, pic #22-23, are definitely turkey tails.
After a good rain, look at a well drained stand of hardwoods, sometimes mixed with pines. If you see orange to gold mushrooms, the big ones almost look like day lily blossoms and their
"gill" structure appears to go slightly downstem with "gills" that look like they branch off and are not perfectly confined to the button. Those are chants. They also don't bleed a white sticky substance when broken and have a fresh almost fruity smell. Do look at references on the net regarding chanterelles. They are easy to recognize. A smaller variety is bright reddish orange with the above characteristics. They are "cinnibars". The gills on chants are considered to be false gills. Smaller button chants, not fully grown, have their false gills confined to the button and have a traditional mushroom shape, but the veins are slightly irregular and branch somewhat from one another. If the gills are regularly shaped and radiate like perfect spokes and are frilly, it's not a chant. Here's a basketful of chants. Note the gill structure and shape of the mushroom in the upper right hand corner of the basket. The stem was accidently broken off. I cut the stems at the base while in the ground for two reasons: less dirt in the basket and it preserves the underground structure of the system. I have a soft tooth brush that I use to lightly brush off sand and dirt while the mushroom is under a cold stream of kitchen faucet. I rub the top of the button with my thumb to remove grit and dirt while under the water stream. I air dry them on a clean towel. I don't clean after harvest; it's better to let them stay unwashed in a paper bag in the fridge. The bag allows them to breathe and avoid moisture from accelerating deterioration. When it's time to cook; it's time to clean. If I have a banner harvest, I sautee them in olive oil and butter and freeze dinner sized portions in a vacuum bag and thaw and heat as needed. Some folks like to dehydrate.

If you run into what looks like a chant, take a good photo and post it.

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Re: THU FRI SAT 09-08-10 There’s a Fungus Amungus

Post by HunterGKS »

Thx for the info, Gil. That's a nice basket of 'shrooms.
George

YOU KNOW YOU HAVE TO KEEP YOUR BODY STILL. YOUR HEART JUST HASN'T CAUGHT ON.

.17 = NITRO OF THE RIMFIRE WORLD USAF 1969-1973


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