Pilobolus crystallinus

12 Bruce, ACT

Pilobolus crystallinus at Bruce, ACT - 5 Jun 2021 10:57 AM
Pilobolus crystallinus at Bruce, ACT - 5 Jun 2021 10:57 AM
Pilobolus crystallinus at Bruce, ACT - 5 Jun 2021 10:57 AM
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Identification history

Pilobolus crystallinus 8 Jun 2021 Heino1

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User's notes

The fruitbodies were up to 3mm tall. The identification is based on the study of several specimens.

3 comments

trevorpreston wrote:
   8 Jun 2021
A beautiful sighting from an underrated spot.
Heino1 wrote:
   8 Jun 2021
The English naturalist John Ray published the first description of the genus Pilobolus in 1688 (though not with that name). He described it (in Latin) as growing from horse dung and with the appearance of a dewy-topped hair, bearing a black spot at the apex. The combination of the transparent stem, swollen top and black dot led him to finish his description by saying that the fungus resembled the eye of a snail.
trevorpreston wrote:
   8 Jun 2021
Thanks for that, it is a fascinating thing, a bit mesmerising. Great photos too.

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Location information

Sighting information

Species information

  • Pilobolus crystallinus Scientific name
  • Common name
  • Not Sensitive
  • Cosmopolitan
  • Non-invasive or negligible
  • Machine learning

Record quality

  • Images or audio
  • More than one media file
  • Verified by an expert moderator
  • Nearby sighting(s) of same species
  • GPS evidence of location
  • Description
  • Additional attributes
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