Fluted Black Elfin Saddles

Yesterday I visited the forest out by Royal Roads University again and was pleased to find these unusual mushrooms called Fluted Black Elfin Saddles (Helvella lacunosa). The charming name describes the way the caps of this mushroom are sometimes saddle shaped. "Fluted" refers to the stalk. I like the way they look but some creature likes the way the caps taste. In many places I found only the stalk remaining while the cap had been neatly snipped (or bitten) off. I suspect deer like these mushrooms too.

Fluted Black Elfin Saddle

On our most recent excursion to Mount Douglas Park I was happy to see a few of these weird little mushrooms with the fanciful name of Fluted Black Elfin Saddles. They really look like the perfect food for all those zombies we've been seeing lately and I understand they are probably edible despite being a little bit poisonous.

Fluted Black Elfin Saddle (Helvella lacunosa)

Usually I avoid attempting to identify mushroms, partly because it is difficult, but also because it often involves taking specimens and I prefer to leave mushrooms, like wild flowers, where I meet them instead of uprooting them just to satisfy my curiosity. However, this mushroom is distinctive enough in appearance alone that I will venture an opinion on its identification as a Fluted Black Elfin Saddle (Helvella lacunosa). It has a rather morbid color and shape and this has set me to wondering why mushrooms differ so much in appearance. Wildflowers are generally agreed to have evolved their shapes and colors to attract pollination agents such as bees. However, I've yet to hear a rationale for any of the variations in shape and color of mushrooms.