On Wednesday the 1st of October, Sidmouth Nature Explorers had a good morning's walk around Mutters Moor heathland on the hunt for fungi and whatever else we might find. Birds were a bit scarce, a few blue tits, a pair of jays deep in the woods, a nuthatch high in a pine tree, blackbirds and some robins flitting around.

Plenty of acorns and beech mast on the ground indicating a good year for all wildlife.

Our biggest count were fungi of which we found several different types including...

• Rooting shank
• Charcoal burner (green variation)
• Shaggy scalycap
• Solitary amanita
• Velvet shank
• Porcelain fungus
• Lactarius quieticolor
• Stereum hirsutum
• Turkeytail
• Buttercap
• The Sickener
• Fly agaric

...to name a few.  Plus one very small but interesting spider. All in all a very successful morning, nice walk and the weather held for us.

Malcolm Seymour, co-leader