FungiFriday: I've Found Horsehair in My Yard

It's the day mushroom lovers have been waiting for—I'm one of them—to post their mushroom finds for #fungifriday hosted by @ewkaw.

Today I have a few mushroom photos that I'm going to share with you here. Today, for some reason, I have no plans to hunt mushrooms in the forest. But I was rather lucky to find some mushrooms in my yard this morning.

Horsehair fungus: it's a unique common name because it refers to the mushroom's physique with its small, slender, and long stems, like horsehair. With a scientific name that is also unique, Marasmius crinis-equi, this is a plant pathogenic fungus belonging to the Marasmiaceae family.

This fungus does not grow on the ground but on dead grass stems or rotten and damp twigs of plants. The mushrooms are fairly short-lived and won't last more than half a day.

The morning before the sun actually crosses the horizon (unless it's an overcast day) is the best time to see this mushroom growing with its cap still fresh, because if it's been exposed to a little sun, it will wither and leave only the stems like hair.