Some fungi parasitise insects and thrive at the expense of its unfortunate hosts. For example, caterpillar fungus or Scarlet Caterpillarclub (Cordyceps militaris) attacks caterpillars. The spores of the fungus attach to a pupa underground, absorb the host’s energy, and eventually push orange clubs above the ground, often found in summer and autumn. On Alderney, there haven’t been any records of Cordyceps militaris that we know of, but there was a record of the species in Guernsey on 9 November 2025!

Cool fact: In traditional Chinese medicine, some species in the genus Cordyceps (e.g. Cordyceps sinensis, also known as winter-worm summer-grass which has a pathogenic lifestyle on Lepidopteron insects) have been used for their medicinal value for centuries.

On 13 November, a Date Waxcap (Hygrocybe spadicea) was spotted in Essex Hill by ecologist Niamh McDevitt. Hygrocybe means ‘watery head’, referring to the fact that these fungi are always moist while spadicea means ‘of a bright clear brown colour’, or chestnut brown.

Date Waxcap is one of Britain’s rarest fungi, with fewer than 100 officially recorded sightings listed on The Fungal Records Database of Britain and Ireland summary. 

This is the first record of the species for Alderney, and only the second for Guernsey, with the last coming from 1995.

Red Cage fungus (also known as the Lattice Stinkhorn) (Clathrus ruber) was spotted by a local resident in Driffield. Initially, it looked like a small white puffball, slightly larger than a golf ball. It then emerged into a salmon/bright red latticed structure. If you sniff it, it gives off a putrid stench of rotting meat. This foul odour attracts flies, which help disperse the fungus’s spores. 

Bay Bolete (Boletus badius) has a brown cap and stipe without any net or dots. It has pale large yellow pores, bruising quickly to a blue/green. When it matures, it is greenish yellow. The stipe is 10 cm long, cylindrical often with a tapered base. It is often seen with both conifers and Beech on acid soil between August and September.

Jelly Ear (Auricularia auricula-judae) is a gelatinous fungus, shaped like a floppy ear. It is usually attached to wood of deciduous trees and shrubs, often Elder. The fruit body is up to 8 cm across.

Fairy Inkcap (Coprinellus disseminatus) is a small, very fragile inkcap found in dense, often spectacular swarms on large stumps of deciduous trees. Cap to 1.2 cm across. They are creamy buff, then greyish with an ochre centre.

Parasol mushroom (Macrolepiota procera) is a disctinctive statuesque mushroom with a long, slender stipe and wide cap that resembles a parasol. It can be found in grass, often on roadside verges and in clearings in deciduous woodland. 

Parasol mushroom can be found in different places on Alderney, such as the churchyard, Tourgis Hill or Mannez football field. The earliest record of Parasol that we received this year was spotted in Blue Bridge on 23 September.

Grey Spotted Amanita is similar to the Blusher but lack sthe red discoloration and has an unpleasant radish-like smell. The cap is covered in patches or spots of grey velar remains. The gills are white, crowded. The stipe is club-shaped, ending in a bulbous base, up to 12 cm long. 

It can be found in deciduous or mixed woodland. 

False chanterelle (Hygrophoropsis aurantiaca) compares to Chanterelle but the gills are different. The mushroom is NOT edible. The gills are decurrent, crowded with many forked.

Common Bonnet is a very common bonnet whose gills are connected by prominent veins. Its conical cap is up to 6 cm across. The stipe is 10 cm long; cylindrical and sometimes compressed. It is usually clustered on decayed and buried wood of deciduous trees, rarely conifers.

Upright coral (Ramaria stricta) has long, dense, slender branches. The fruit body is up to 10 cm high and 8 cm wide. It comprises a short stipe that divides repeatedly into numerous parallel branches, these ending in thorn-like tips. 

It is often found on decayed wood of deciduous trees, rarely on conifers and sometimes abundant on flowerbeds mulched with wood-chippings.

It was recorded on the Leat Path leading to Bonne Terre on 9 November 2025.

Shaggy inkcap (Coprinus comatus), also known as 'lawyer's wig'

Cap diameter: 5-15cm
Stem height: 10-30cm

The shaggy inkcap displays a tall, narrow, cylindrical cap that is white and very 'shaggy' with 'scales' over its surface. The cap gradually opens out to a bell shape. The gills are very crowded; they are white at first, then turn pink and eventually black, dissolving from the margin of the cap until it is almost entirely gone. The shaggy inkcap has a tall, smooth, white stem with a moveable ring.

It is very common and can be seen at the road side, in parklands and even popping up in lawns.