amateur science


mushroom on the roof

Originally uploaded by hans s

I posted about the extended growing season for mushrooms in the UK a few weeks ago. A cool fact I didn’t know at the time: the discovery was due to a 50 year data collection by Alan Ganges, an amateur mycologist.

Fungus enthusiast Edward Gange amassed 52,000 sightings of mushroom and toadstools during walks around Salisbury over a 50-year period. Analysis by his son Alan, published in the journal Science, shows some fungi have started to fruit twice a year. It is among the first studies to show a biological impact of warming in autumn.

Science takes passion and creativity and you don’t have to dedicate your life to it to contribute or enjoy it.

Via Majikthise.