Here are a few photos from spring foray in Zilker Park! We continued to observe and ID mushrooms for the Zilker Mushroom iNaturalist Project.
It was a humid day, perfect conditions for mushrooms and we didn't get out of the parking lot before seeing a Stalked Lattice Stinkhorn, Lysurusperi phragmoides. The only screams heard were from the stench and not a spontaneous orgasm.
FROM COLORADO.EDU:
"Flies are attracted to the cap of the mushroom by stinky compounds emanating from a thick slime that flies and other insects drink. But the slime is also a dense suspension of spores, which are single cells that serve the same function as seeds. Bees and beetles also eat the cap or gleba and inadvertently swallow spores. To insure spore dispersal, the slime has a potent laxative that induces flies to dribble tarry feces rich in spores, usually in close proximity to the stinkhorn."
Not only did we witness flies and beetles collecting spores, it was a treat to hear the biodata from the stinkhorn collected by @winkwinketc and @ornate_coleman for the upcoming Octopus Project audio-visual performance on May 1st. Tickets go on sale on April 15.