Words & Images
Alison Pouliot

 

FUNGI and fungus-seeking folk draw me to the field on a daily basis in my efforts  to understand perceptions of these organisms.

A field-based approach means regularly negotiating the unexpected, as well as embracing serendipity.

This photo essay presents a brief foray into my fieldwork in Australia and Europe.

 

Fungi

Fungi are curious organisms.

Some of the fungi I’ve encountered in my fieldwork look like these…

Fungi - Alison Pouliot

And these….

Mykologiveckan Swedish Mycological Society September 2013

Fungal folk are also curious, and some look like these….

Alison Pouliot

And these.

Fungi

These fungal folk observe and collect fungi for different reasons. Sometimes scientific…

Fungi

Sometimes out of curiosity…

Fungi

And other times as food.

Forest

The archives I draw from in this research are mostly in the forest.

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Both in Australia….

Forest

And Europe.

Trees

These many and varied forest archives provide the richest sources of this research.

 The histories and stories are all there.

 In and on trees.

 Etched in rockfaces.

 Within leaf litter and soil.

 Among communities of fungi.

 Shared by the forayers & foragers.

 And in the tracks and traces left behind.

stag

Then there are Archives of Invisible Lives.

These bracket fungi, along with the help of bacteria, invertebrates and diligent woodpeckers, recycle this stag, returning it to the forest soils.

Fungi snow

 Weather Archives, such as this fungal ‘snow meter’, provide a good indication of overnight snowfalls.

Fungarium

In the depths of winter when fungi and fungal folk lie low, I head to the depths of the Fungarium at Kew Botanic Gardens.

Fungarium records

Almost 1.3 million dried fungus specimens (including c.a. 50,000 original types) are housed in the Fungarium.

Kew specimen drawers

The lack of mycological expertise in Australia in the century following European settlement saw most specimens make the journey to the northern hemisphere for identification.

Kew specimens

Many of these are still housed in the archives at Kew.

Kew books

Both as specimens and written records.

Cold

When it gets really bleak, I return Downunder for further fungal foraying.

Fire in the Dandenong Ranges

But things can be just as bleak back home.

Burnt Wombat Forest

 Working in the field is about being prepared for the unexpected.

Beware of the dog sign

…the locals might not always be friendly.

Weird locals

Or can be downright weird.

Fungi

Or language translations might be necessary.

Field assistant

Field assistants might not like early morning starts…

Resting

Or run out of steam.

Prepared

No matter how well prepared…

Treacherous path

The path can be treacherous…

Snow path

Or obscured…

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completely.

No room at inn

And at the end of the day, you might find there’s no room at the inn.

Fungi collection

Much of this research is spent with my eyes keenly fixed on the forest floor.

But before I hang up my boots at the end of the day, I always remind myself to look up…

Unexpected

It would be a shame to miss out on the extraordinary and unexpected.

Wanderungen im Centovalli, Oktober 2008