Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄

@dustymcdusterson

I post nature pictures, mostly fungi, taken on my daily hikes with my pup Winston. The forest is my happy place and helps regulate my PTSD. Lefty atheist USAF vet, mycophile, Environmental Scientist w/ a MS in Geoscience. Aspiring writer and photographer.

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Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· 14d

We've been hearing this young Red Tailed Hawk seemingly succeeding at establishing their territory in our neighborhood over the past week. The local ravens & crows have put up a valiant effort attempting to chase them off but I think our sky might be under new management now. #RedTailedHawk #Bird

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· 16d

I finally got around to harvesting and prepping the first round of #Salal berries from the bushes I've been tending in my yard. My go to has been a lemon vanilla salal muffin but this year I incorporated a little matcha powder. The lemon zest will probably overpower it but I love the color. #Nature

The Salal berry bunches after harvest. I left plenty for the birds. The bushes I've been feeding compost and routinely watering are absurd compared to the ones I see in the "wild" that are usually heavily browsed by humans harvesting for floral arrangements.

The end result was just over 4 cups of berries, just shy of a liter. Not bad for the first harvest. About 10% of the berries on my main cluster of bushes, although most of what is left is still green which means I'll have several more rounds to go through the fall! I used half of this for the muffins this morning and have the rest in the chest freezer to test how well they freeze.

Immediately after incorporating the berries into the muffin batter.

All set in the silicon muffin pans. They're gonna be ugly little buggers, but if the batter is any indication they should be delicious.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· 17d

I found this bottle taken over by moss abandoned in the woods this winter and thought it would fit with the theme of #Glass for this weekend's #BlueskyArtShow #Photography #Moss I backlit it with one of my lights to give it an ethereal look.

This is one where I wish I had my DSLR with me at the time. I would have tried to get a little more of the mossy bed in focus but still a fun shot looking into the mossy interior of the bottle. Backlit with a small LED light.

The side view of a bottle likely from the 50s or 60s with moss growing inside of it on a bed of moss. Someone may have moved it to this location, found quite a ways off trail.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· 17d

What a difference 18 days makes! #Fungi #ReturnToTheSceneOfTheCrime #Growth #ShroomScrolling #DappledSunshine

A cluster of mushrooms emerge from a decaying fir stump. Their caps are a velvety brown with creamy gills and that travel down the stem before more velvet dominates. Scene here with some dramatic lighting thanks to the evergreen huckleberry that was providing a little shade from the the sun.

A slightly different angle with a better placed supplemental lighting to highlight the gills. The dappling sunshine on the stump and mushroom makes for some dramatic lighting that I dig more than a perfectly lit subject.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· 17d

I took 2x top-down shots during my visit. I found I liked it when the ground remained out of focus and ended up not using all of the pictures. The lighting was a bit frustrating as it was both windy and partly cloudy, so conditions changed rapidly as you can see in these different shots.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· 17d

I returned to this bouquet of Ghost Pipe yesterday and was impressed with their progress...also grateful no one has picked them in the 19 days between visits. (Monotropa uniflora) #BloomScrolling #GhostPipe #Flowers #Myco-heterotroph #FungiParasite #Fungi

Most of the ghost pipe flowers are now fully erect facing up. Only the one straggler on the right is still facing away perpendicular to the ground. The stems are still a beautiful pinkish white with increased bruising seen along the small leaflets that line the stems. The flowers have seen their fair share of pollinators based on the bruising.

This was the closest I could get with my primary lens.

A top down view of the same bouquet of Ghost Pipe flower/plants.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· 20d

While feeding the birds this morning I got a fright when I noticed several piles of vomit in front of where Winston was resting. I've never been so happy to see slime mold! They definitely lived up to their name, dog vomit slime mold, looking like piles of bile. (Fuligo septica) #SlimeMold #Dog

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· 22d

An animation of the above images highlighting the differences in lighting as well as the movement of the insects and spider. #Animation #GIF

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· 22d

There is a whole lot going on in this little scene in addition to the #ForbiddenCandyFloss These are both focus stacked images w/ series taken on the same tripod setup but with slight adjustment to the lighting. An animation below highlights the differences. #SlimeMold #Spider #Insect #Fungi

A closer view of the amanita being invaded by another fungi reveals a tiny world. A tiny fly saunters along the left side of the fluffy covered fungi while an ant crawls upside down along the edges of the cap, using their forelimbs to muss with their head. A spider is just making their way on scene in the bottom center just below what appear to be 2x white slime mold specimens.

This focus stack series of pictures was taken within a minute of the previous picture with only a slight adjustment made to the lighting by moving the 2nd light to the right for a more dramatic look. Note that the ant in image 1 is now nowhere to be found. The spider located toward the bottom has advanced slightly toward the apparent slime mold. The fly is now standing on what looks to be a piece of pine fluff just a tiny distance away from where it was seen in the previous image. A tiny springtail has appeared out of nowhere just to the left of the fly.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· 22d

With the decent amount of rain we received Thursday I had hoped for some interesting finds this weekend & this did not disappoint. #Nature #FungiFriends This fluffy white fungus stood out as a bright beacon in the duff as it invaded an old amanita mushroom. #Fungi Closer shots w/ #Insects & more ⬇️

An old amanita mushroom can't escape their fate as they become enveloped in the mechanicians of another fungi that is taking advantage of the mushroom's structure and recent rainfall. The fluffy white nature of this invading fungi reminiscent of a sort of forbidden candy floss. The mushroom had a brown coloration with cream colored universal veil remnants flecking their cap. The other fungi advancing not only covers 70% of the mushroom but also a good 1-2 inches (2.5-5cm) of the surrounding forest floor.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jul 10

A brief shaky video twirling the thimbleberry, Rubus parviflorus, with the shedded insect exoskeleton.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jul 10

I was stoked to try my first #Thimbleberry of the year, but was surprised this insect refused to move, even when super close. It took me longer than I'd care to admit before I finally realized it was a shedded insect exoskeleton. I think this is the #Exuvia of a #Leafhopper. #Berry #Insect #AltText

A cluster of thumbleberries, (Rubus parviflorus) the center dark red one is fully ripe while the 2x lighter red ones still need some time to mature. Another 2 heads look to have failed to have turned to fruit. The ripe berry had an translucent insect exoskeleton shed, exuvia, attached where the insect who shed it apparently assumed would be a good place to molt. The berry was still tasty after carefully removing the exuvia.

A closer view of the translucent insect shed with the head facing down and to the right and the thorax to the upper left. The legs are all visible. All resting on a bright red thimbleberry.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jul 10

Taken a few days prior the left side had lots of Guttation. It looks like they may have slurped all of it up.

The same fungi a day earlier with guttation seen being excreted from the entire surface including the left side where the slugs were found today.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jul 10

Love is in the air.... 🎶 This pair of slugs enjoying the guttation excreted from this heart shaped crust fungi. #Fungi #Guttation #Slugs #Heart

A white crust fungi has lots grown into what resembles a ❤️ the fungi is excreting a fair amount of guttation, especially on the right side. A pair of tiny slugs are hanging out on the left side of the heart, are they the reason there is exposed wood nearby?

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jul 6

We found a couple of adorably bulbous Velvet Roll-rim today. (Tapinella atrotomentosa) Found on the same stump I've found it flushing from a few times now, see the old post below. #DéjàVu #Fungi #FungiFriends #Mushroom #MacroPhotography

Two clusters of velvet Roll-rim fungi spring out of what I believe to be a Douglas for stump. The name said it all. These mostly brown fungi have a velvety brown top with a light brown stipe. In this case the stem is quite bulbous. The gills are a creamy white with a drastic transition from the stem to the gills. The top mushroom is hiding 3 more tiny fungi similar to the lower 2.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jul 6

Four more pictures of the above bouquet of Ghost pipe. Picture 2 and 3 are the same angle but 2 had a wider depth of field so more was in focus and you can make out the background vs 3 with a much narrower depth of field with the background remaining super blurry.

A closeup from a slightly different angle of the heads of the Ghost pipe bouquet. 9 total plants and flowers all facing different ways. This grouping had a lot more dark bruising on the individual flowers. I'm not sure if that was from the surrounding vegetation or if that is evidence of a certain pollinator. A focus stack of 28 pictures. f/5.6 1/500'

A composite of 27 images with with a wide depth of field. The bruising on the flower petals is very evident and does lead me to believe that this is likely due to a pollinator. f/29 1/15'

The same angle as image 2 here but this composite of 21 images had a much narrower depth of field so the background remains quite blurry and makes the flowers unnaturally pop. f/5.6 1/500'

A closer look at the leftmost cluster of Ghost Pipes. Here you can see that the entire plant is not all white with a creamy yellow anthers. Its funny seeing a white stigma in the center of those anthers. Another focus stack with narrow depth of field. f/5.6 1/500' 36 images total.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jul 6

The last of the photos from the Ghost pipe spotted this weekend. (Monotropa uniflora) #BloomScrolling #Fungi #Myco-heterotroph #FungiFriends Four more shots of this bouquet can me seen in the comments. #AltText

A bouquet of Ghost Pipe flowers spring out of the forest floor that is covered in a mix of fir cones, needles, leaves and bright green tendrils of moss. As indicated by their scientific species name, Monotropa uniflora, they have one flower per stem. Their stem and the majority of their flower parts are all a stark white with faint hints of pink. They are3 very delicate and bruise easily which shows up in as black accenting the flower and bits of stem that have been rubbed the wrong way. My understanding is each of these is their own individual plant and they are just growing in a sort of cluster that bouquet seemed to fit. They don't have any chlorophyl and have to rely on tapping into the fungal network for their food.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jul 6

More of my favorite #Myco-heterotroph, the Ghost pipe! (Monotropa uniflora) #BloomScrolling #Fungi #FungiFriends This one with a Chanterelle mushroom posed perfectly in front of it with a leafy salal sprig providing separation.

A lone chanterelle of a creamy yellow coloration springs forth from the duff being slightly contorted by the Douglas fir cone it sprung frum under that was held fast by the moss that covers the forest floor. A sprig of salal extends across the from from the left separating this mushroom from the fungi infesting gorgeous ghost plant cluster in the background. The ghost pipe have a faint pink hue to their otherwise stark white stalk and flower parts with accents of black bruises. This is a composite shot of 29 images focus stacked. I took a second after capturing the foreground to add lighting to the ghost pipe for the last 10 pictures. Making due with what I have and I love the results.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jul 6

Ghost Pipe are blooming! #BloomScrolling (Monotropa uniflora) These are my favorite of all the local non-photosynthesizing plants with their delicate faintly pink to stark-white stalks that bruise in gorgeous black accents seemingly designed for a noir film. #Myco-heterotroph #Fungi #FungiFriends

5 fully mature plants stand tall over their stunted friend. Based on the bruising I'd water the larger plants have been exposed for a while longer than their diminutive friend that looks to have already flowered. The plants and flowers are white with a faint pink hue to them. They bruise very easily and that bruising turns a very contrasty black that gives them a sort of painted look. A composite of 9 pictures were focus stacked for this image. There was a bright red mite crawling about them the entire time but I unfortunately missed it in this shot.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jun 28

A few more observations from the hike at Banner Heritage Park in Port Orchard Washington this past Friday. #Fungi #BloomScrolling #Myco-Heterotroph #Moss #Nature

Another of my favorites, the perfectly pink gnome plant emerging through the mossy duff.

An amanita with a light yellow cap dappled in oatmeal looking remnants of the universal veil emerges from beside an old moss and lichen covered stump.

A mushroom I'm pretty sure is of the Russula genus makes its way in the crook of a stump. The mushroom has a grey cap with white gills and a white stipe and is standing right in front of a dark passage heading into the stump ringed by moss.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jun 28

My first Leafless Wintergreen!! Pyrola aphylla. #BloomScrolling #Flowers My first love is #Fungi, but a very close second are #Non-Photosynthesizing plants. Plants that are fully reliant on fungi for their carbon and nutrients, just like I'm reliant on fungi for my joy! #Mycoheterotroph unite!

I found a trio of these in the local forest, Banner Heritage Park in Port Orchard. I was super excited to find these as I didn't even know they existed. I initially wondered if they were an odd looking Woodland Pinedrop (Pterospora andromedea) that I've come across a couple of times in recent years as they have almost pumpkin looking fruiting bodies I could have seen these becoming but I was super excited to find out they were an entirely new species of Non-photosynthesizing plant I wasn't even aware of. The flowering stalk extended about 12-18 inches (30-45 cm) above the forest floor. Another stalk was found about an arms length away from this one.

These gorgeous flower have an very phallic looking Pistil that drops down and has a sort of mushroom head looking tip that appears to have moisture and or nectar surrounding it.

The other plant found nearby. I couldn't get over the colors of these. The Bright orange/yellow anther at the tip of the white filament. The phallic pistil that drops down and the ink dappled with shite petals that protect these from the elements. A light green sepal is present and possibly has chlorophyll here?

Another angle of the 1st plant also seen in image 1 and 2 of this post.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jun 26

A couple more shots from yesterday's brief lunchtime walk in the forest.

I believe these bright red berries are Red elderberry, Sambucus racemosa.

A Pacific trillium flower going to seed. The shape of the seed pod reminds me of a stubby okra pod.

A grouping of bright yellow flowers of what I believe to be a weed, albeit still fun to look at.

A closer view of the 3rd picture in this post with the bright yellow flower petals dominating the picture with 3x flower heads that appear to have already had their day and are working on going to seed.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jun 26

A side view of a nearby neighbor of the same species as the above post. This one has a lot more flowers than just the 4 seen on the other plant.

A side view with more lighting reveals the delicate frilly flowers have more white portions than visible from a top view.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jun 26

One of my favorite flowers to find, Heal-all, Prunella vulgaris. Also known as Self-heal, Woundwort and apparently Carpenter's herb, among others. #BloomScrolling #Flowers #Nature #Photography

A top view of some a symmetrical Heal-all.plany with bright purple flowers with white highlights and edges standing in stark contract to the dark green leaves and flowering structure.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jun 21

A few closer shots of some of the groupings seen in the above picture. The 3rd picture is a bonus loner found several hundred meters away from the large grouping.

A closer shot of the left brighter red colored grouping with a bonus 4th plant in the background that was largely obscured in the image above. This picture is a composite of 18 images focus stacked.

The right more pink to pale orange coloration grouping. The darker coloration toward the base of their stem is due to damage. This picture is a composite of 13 pictures focus stacked.

The bonus loner. This picture is a composite of 13 pictures focus stacked.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jun 21

Check out this massive grouping of flowering Pinesap, Monotropa hypopitys. #BloomScrolling A few closeups of this group and a bonus loner found nearby can be seen below in the comments. #Nature #Myco-heterotroph #Parasitism #Fungi #FungiGarderners

A large grouping of pinesap dominate this side of the trail with at least 13 sprouts present here growing among the salal and evergreen huckleberry. This picture is a composite of 13 images focus stacked.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jun 21

A few odds and ends from Friday's trip to McCormick Forest Park in Gig Harbor Washington State. #Fungi #Orchid #BloomScrolling #MacroPhotography Picture 2 is often seen at this park having been infected by the Hypomyces lactifluorum fungi, resulting in lobster mushrooms.

A Bolete, possibly of the Zeller's variety.

A Russula, possibly a Russula brevipes, sprouting forth from the forest floor. I believe someone already removed the litter from the top of this one prior to my coming across it. These large white fungi are quite common at this park and are often seen in their lobster mushroom form when infected by the also common here Hypomyces lactifluorum.

A spotted coralroot orchid I believe to be the Corallorhiza maculata var. ozettensis. A fly can be seen hanging out on one of the lower flowers.

A Russula fungi with its cap nearly fully eaten away. I normally would attribute this to slugs but didn't see any slug trails and the the way it was eaten doesn't seem right either. Unsure what creature ate this poor fella.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jun 21

A closer shot of the same fungi seen above. A lone unidentified insect can be seen on the right side of the stipe just below the ring.

A closer shot of the same fungi as seen above but with the steps including less depth as the above. A total of once again 21 pictures were focus stacked to make this picture with a tighter sequence as the background is clearly not included here.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jun 21

One of the few Amanita #Fungi seen at McCormick Forest Park Friday. I really enjoyed the composition including the sporangia dotted frond of a nearby #SwordFern in the background. A closer shot of the fungi can be seen below. #MacroPhotography #Nature

A singular amanita pops forth from the forest floor here with a creamy yellow cap dotted by rolled oat looking universal veil remnants. The stipe is a creamy white and has a ring just above halfway down the stipe toward the volva, mostly obscured by the forest litter here. A likely Douglas fir cone can be seen just to the right. A couple of Sword Fern fronds act as the backdrop here with their sporangia clearly visible dotting the underside of the frond exposed here. This shot is a composite of 21 images taken in a series focus stacked.

Dusty McDusterson (He/Him) 🍄@dustymcdusterson· Jun 21

A brief video I made of the plants seen in the images above along with 2x bonus gnome plants further into the bush. #GnomePlant #Nature #Fungi #Myco-heterotroph