RISE & SHINE

Strange but beautiful fungi and slime moulds are popping up beneath our feet. It's time to slow down and marvel at a magical techicolour show.

In the limelight

An iconic, fairy-tale fly agaric mushroom (Amanita muscaria) stands proud in a damp autumn woodland in 2019 - the start of Dutch photographer Jan Vermeer's voyage into the mysterious world of fungi. He used a 40-year-old camera lens to create the 'bokeh', soft focus effect.

It's in the name

The shocking blood-red cap of the aptly named bloody brittlegill (Russula sanguinaria) can be seen in coniferous forests. The generic name of the mushroom, Russula, means red, and sanguinea is derived from the Latin sanguis, which means blood.

Microscopic world

"The blue dots are the slime mould Physarum album, which is closely related to mushrooms," says Jan. "They are tiny, maybe 5mm so you need a special 25mm lens to capture them - a normal macro lens isn't close enough." A larva belonging to the Isopod order can also be seen.

Roll up, roll up

You could be looking up at the roof of a circus tent but this is actually sunlight shining through the two-toned gills of Laccaria bicolor - with a small springtail tightrope walker near the centre. "Fungi are what I call 'nature monuments"," says Jan. "You have to approach them like a work of art."

Coastal blue

The astonishing turquoise colour of Stropharia aeruginosa, commonly known as verdigiris agaric, was on Jan's 'top 10' wish list to see, and social media proved helpful. After spotting an image of the mushroom on Facebook, Jan approached the photographer who kindly shared its location in a coastal pine plantation.

Tickled pink