Ecologically industrious and alluringly diverse, Australia’s puffballs, earthstars, jellies, agarics and their mycelial kin merit your attention. The Centre for Environmental History's Alison Pouliot ponders our bonds with the mighty fungus kingdom in the Spring 2014 issue of Wildlife Australia.  

As the sun rises, I venture off-track into a dripping forest in the Otway Ranges. Mountain ash tower overhead, their lower trunks carpeted in mosses, lichens and liverworts. The leeches are also up early and greet me with enthusiasm. A white scallop-shaped form at the base of a manna gum catches my eye. Omphalotus nidiformis, the ghost fungus. A valuable marker. If it’s dark when I return, the eerie pale green glow of this luminous fungal cairn will be a welcome beacon. Descending deeper into the forest, a damp funk hits my nostrils, signalling fungi. As my eyes adjust and the morning lightens, I make out diverse fungal forms in cryptic microcosms. Elegant pink parasols adorn a fallen log. Carmine fungal brackets wear lichen skirts. Transparent goblets capture morning drizzle. With so many fungi to meet, identify, contemplate and photograph, there’s no time to waste.

  Read the full article (PDF) Alison Pouliot is an ecologist, environmental photographer and PhD scholar at the Australian National University. Her research addresses perceptions of fungi in environmental history and biodiversity conservation. She spends much of her time getting to know the fungi of Victoria’s forests. Alison's website