Mycology

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This fungus is growing on a hard-packed crushed granite RV pad that gets blasted with afternoon sun. What could be surviving here? (mander.xyz)

submitted 3 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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[–] [email protected] 26 points 3 months ago

This fungus.

[–] [email protected] 20 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

Central Texas zone 8b, near the Balcones Canyonlands. Escarpment live oak and Ashe juniper growing nearby.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Went ahead and sliced it open. This is not a puffball, based on what I'm reading it's probably an earthball. Might be Scleroderma polyrhizum "dead man's hand" or Scleroderma michiganense "potato earthball." Either way, not going to eat this one!

[–] [email protected] 16 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Google image search tells me that's either an earth puffball or a piece of bread with black garlic on it.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 3 months ago

Mmmm...forbidden black garlic

[–] [email protected] 9 points 3 months ago

Puffballs! Step on them when really dry and they make a satisfying POP under your foot

[–] [email protected] 9 points 3 months ago (2 children)

App on my phone says Hard-Skinned Puffball

[–] [email protected] 10 points 3 months ago

I get called that all the time in the app on my phone

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago

are you sure that isn't just a case of your phone dissing you?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Eat it

[–] [email protected] 36 points 3 months ago (3 children)

Was hoping for an ID from an anonymous source on Lemmy first

[–] Omgboom 17 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Whether or not it kills you will help us identify it

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago

But how will we know whether it killed OP or they forgot about the post

[–] [email protected] 6 points 3 months ago

I see these occasionally, north of Utopia

[–] [email protected] 0 points 2 months ago

Looks like some sort of Bovista (puffball) to me.