On a recent visit to the Arboretum, I noticed a Earthstar mushroom commonly known as the Rounded Earthstar.
"It has a worldwide distribution and is found growing on rotting wood. It is considered inedible by mushroomers because of its bitter taste. It is a common mushroom, but collections are at their peak during late summer. The opening of the outer layer of the fruiting body in the characteristic star shape is thought to be due to a buildup of calcium oxalate crystals...In Brazil, it scommon name translates to "star of the land"."Wikipedia
Earthstar Puffball
Earthstar Puffball - a couple years earlier we found this unusually looking mushroom during our hiking in Pisgah Forest.
The day was very humid, in the morning there was a shower.
On the Cornell University Mushroom Blog I have found an interesting small video showing that this mushroom changes depending on the weather - opens when it is raining, closes when the weather is dry.
The earthstar mushroom is sometimes called the "barometer earthstar" because the pointed rays of the star react to the amount of water in the air. When it's very dry, the ray-shaped arms fold around the center puffball to protect it from predators and the elements. As the rains begin, the different parts of the hygroscopic rays absorb water at different rates, causing them to unfold to expose the center puffball.
Earthstars belong to a group of fungi called Gasteromycetes, or "stomach fungi". Their fruiting bodies are a stomach-shaped sac filled with dry spores. They are related to puffballs. Young, closed earthstars are onion-shaped. Their peridium (skin) is made up of three layers. The layers allow the earthstar to do something no other fungus can do. Earthstars can move! When it rains, the outer two layers of the peridium split and uncurl, forming a "star" with 4 to 12 rays. The inner layer of the peridium remains a closed sac.
Earthstars are found from early June to mid-September.
We found this mushroom on March 13, 2020
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