Deceiver Fungi

• Deceiver fungus (Laccaria Laccato) got its name because the caps will change colour with age and the weather – they can be orangey brown, cinnamon, pale or dark tan and pinkish red or almost white. 
• Its generic name means “shiny paint” and “varnished”.
• They are often found in woodland but this clump was next to the Cleveland Way footpath near the cliff edge.
• We saw these in December in a year of very mild weather. They usually grow between June and November.
• They are edible but the stems are hollow, touch and fibrous.
• Fungi have no chlorophyl so they can’t photosynthesize. They get their energy from whatever they are growing in – soil, leaf mould, dead matter. 
• They are an important part of the decomposition process and release nitrogen and phosphorus back into the atmosphere.
• Many insects and slugs feed on them and then become part of the food chain themselves, for small mammals.
• There are other more spectacular Deceivers such as the Twisted Deceiver  with a contorted, undulating cap and the Amethyst Deceiver which is bright purple.