Day Four of the Fungal Foray

Back into collecting again, this time in Paparoa National Park, in the Punakaiki Cavern and by the Pororari River.

Map of the collection area.  

All the localities we visited had been included in a DOC collection permit.  We use collection methods that result in minimal disturbance, ie, picking specimens directly with no specialised equipment or traps.  Only part of the fungi is collected from any site which ensures minimal impact on the population.  Only small groups of less than ten people can visit a single locality at any one time.  If members of the public notice us collecting material, we are instructed to explain that we are doing so with special permission, and explain the value of our research.

The Pororari River track follows a spectacular limestone gorge containing a forest, featuring subtle changes from sub-tropical to temperate. 

It was a pleasure, at times,  to sit and enjoy the beauty around you.

A selection of the specimens from the area.  Including the catalogue number in situ photos of 

specimens ensures that they can be matched with dried samples, cultures and DNA sequences 

held in the collection.

This colony of mushrooms was found on the roots of Potutakawa, uplifted by a recent storm.

We also visited the Arnold River Dam Walk.  The original forest was cut down long ago, 

but some notable trees remain, including multi-trunked rime, totara and rata.

My collection for the day after I had identified them, using various texts and help
from experts who were always interested in people's finds and ready to offer support .

As always, the ID table where specimens are placed for verification
was full, with a wide selection of mushrooms of all kinds.

An important way to identify mushrooms is by close observation of their spores.  
Spore prints are a useful aid to identification.  Spore drops (on plates where the 
spores can drop onto media) was also carried out.

Day Three of the Fungal Foray

Today was a day of talks on fungi by seventeen different presenters, some experts in their field, others masters' students.  

Presentations covered a wide variety of subjects, but talks I found particularly interesting or thought provoking were:

• Deadwood fungi in West Coast forest or "No good purpose would be served by leaving that timber in the forest to rot" by Ian Dickie
• A burning interest in post-fire fungal communities by Tom Burns
• Dating the emergence of New Zealand sequestrate fungi by Andy Nilsen
• A search for the co-evolutionary partners of New Zealand's sequestrate fungi by Toni Atkinson
• The world of fungi: Understanding the sociocultural significance of fungi in Aotearoa by Ali Nicholls
• Investigating the impact of kauri die-back on fungi associated with Agathis australis roots and leaf litter by Priya Ajithkumar
• Culturable root endophytes of conifer species in an urban environment by Isabel King

The last two were of particular interest as I have been involved, in a small way, in these two projects which are part of the work that Manaaki Whenua is doing around kauri die-back disease: washing and sterilising kauri roots and preparing inhibition cultures with Phytophthora agathidicida, an aggressive pathogen present in symptomatic kauri.

A small sample of the presentations

Day Two of the Fungal Foray

After our communal breakfast and sandwich making, it was time to choose a different collection site, this time site 1 in our map, Woods Creek walking track.  This passed through areas of mature ad regenerating forest.  It was also interesting historically for its old mining tunnels and race tracks from 19 century gold mining days.  The alternate route to get there was also interesting; as we had to negotiate through washed out tracks, a swollen creek and a working open mine to arrive at our destination.

A localised map of the collection area.

The weather was much more clement today.  This made photography much easier,
as there was no nagging concern for wet cameras as I took photos in the field.

A pair of borrowed fingerless groves made collection much more straight forward, no need to take

gloves on and off all the time, and forever be looking in many pockets to find where they are hiding.

Specimens that are added to the collection need to have a photo taken in situ with their ID number.

We found mushrooms in an outstanding array of colours at this collection site, here are a few. 
These photos are not numbered as other people in my party were taking specimens back to the hall.
It was more prudent to take photos, rather than uplift unnecessary duplicates of the same sample.

We also ventured into several of the old mining tunnels in the area.  We found many small cave wetas on the walls.

This is just a small portion of the ID table; there was a wealth of diverse specimens on view.  It was
interesting to look at samples under the microscope and to confer with others as I worked through the identification process.

Identification of fungi

Each day after collection, teams return to the hall to definitively identify their specimens.  Scientists pour over their samples and use prior experience, books, networking around the room and  microscope work to formally identify their specimens.

While some scientists bring equipment for their own use, there is still plenty 

of microscopes available for anyone on the foray who wishes to use them.

Graduate students seconded to  Landcare Research working on their specimens.

There is plenty of help available to assist with identification - lots of reference books and check sheets such as this one. 

My first try at identifying my specimens from the field.

If someone is unsure of the ID of their specimen, they place it on the ID check table and
scientists who are expert on that particular field will confirm or amend the species and genus.  All specimens are placed here for ID confirmation, and to weed out needless duplication.

It was interesting to see that the ID of  one of my specimens was changed and re-changed as scientists conferred.

When  ID is established, it was entered into the database.  Park also uploaded a photo of the specimen in the field.  Back in the lab, Park will also carry out DNA sequencing on these samples to verify their species and genus.

Chris taking samples: some to grow cultures and some for spore spore counts.

Day One of the Fungal Foray

After a communal breakfast and sandwich making, it was time to choose a collection site.  I was with a group of four scientists who decided to go to site 12 in our map, subalpine forest on the Croesus track near Blackball.

Contour map of the collection area - we went to the area to the west.

Weather was such that it made perfect sense of the term, rainforest.

It gave us the perfect conditions to try out our wet weather gear.

I watched to see the patience and care needed to find and collect mushrooms.

Once collected, specimens packaged with an ID number giving details of its location and substrate.  Some people favour greaseproof paper, but paper bags, tinfoil and fishing boxes are also used.  The mushrooms are also photographed in situ with the ID number.

Fungal Foray 2018

Manaaki Whenua is involved in the New Zealand Fungal Foray every year, traditionally held in Autumn as the height of the mushroom season.  It is a field trip for observing and collecting specimens over several days, and for learning about the mushrooms and other fungi growing in a particular region of New Zealand.  Time is set aside each day after collection, to work on identifying specimens and uploading their photos and reference numbers into the (Fungal Network of New Zealand) FUNNZ database. In the evenings, there are talks and presentations by scientists on interesting fungi and other mycological topics.

This year, the foray is centred around Lake Brenner in the Southern Alps.  The collection area covers a wide area: as far north as Paparoa National Park, as far south as Harihari, as far west as Point Elizabeth and as far east as Arthurs Pass National Park.  These are all sites where Landcare Research has sought and gained approval from DOC to collect specimens for scientific purposes.

Map showing collection points centred around Lake Brenner.

A number of specimens are chosen to be accessioned into research collection, either at the University of Otago,  Scion or the New Zealand Fungarium at Landcare Research, Auckland.  After photographing, these are dried as part of the process of readying them for storage.  In addition small samples are taken for DNA extraction to assist with identification, and to grow on agar media.  The resulting live culture will be deposited in the ICMP, also at Landcare Research in Auckland.

Map of the route taken by the Tranzalpine.

A small group travelled by train, to make room for drying equipment and microscopes in the rental cars.

One of the many iconic views from the train as we traversed Arthur's Pass.

Workshop 2 at the Royal Society

One of the key activities in our second workshop was to plan and take a Science lesson, with a particular focus on asking Ambitious Science Teaching questioning strategies to extend students' thinking.

Students were tasked with investigating surfaces for a skate ramp.

We also carried out several group investigations, with a focus on gathering and critiquing evidence.

We were introduced to the new NZCER capability playing cards and used them
in sorting games to enhance our understanding of the five Science capabilities.

Kauri die-back in the media

The most recent publication from the Auckland Regional Council confirmed the closure of walking tracks in the Waitakare Ranges, and the rationale behind it.