ROSY EARTHSTAR

Among our most unusual and distinctive fungi are earthstars, such as this Rosy Earthstar, which exhibits a pinkish hue to its corona of ‘rays’. Earthstars love dry places, such as vegetated dunes. Finding one is always a red-letter day. Earthstars are revered by mycologists, who are often secretive about the precise location of the rarest of Britain’s 17 species. For a reason presumably not associated with culinary purposes, earthstar fans are known as ‘gastros’.