Can you find trust's fungi?

VISITORS to Wraxall's historic Tyntesfield Estate are being asked to help with a special survey to find where fungi is growing on the site.The Waxcap survey is being launched by the National Trust in a bid to learn more about the types of fungi which exist in the area.Surveys over the past two years at Tyntesfield have identified 18 waxcap species and more than 450 fungal species all in all.From October to December the rainbow colours of the waxcap appear on tightly cropped lawns and old grassland where no fertiliser or soil improvers have been added.Throughout the autumn the trust will be asking visitors to Tyntesfield to look out for waxcaps - which have shiny tops - and log them on a special website.To help people distinguish which type of fungi they have discovered, whether it be a snowy, parrot or ballerina species, a special guide will be available to download from the trust's websiteNational Trust head of conservation Dr David Bullock said: "Although we suspect that trust land is home to a great many waxcaps, we don't have a good picture of where they are and don't have the resources to survey all the lawns and grasslands which we care for."We are asking our visitors to help us find out exactly what is out there."All our visitors need is a keen pair of eyes, pen, paper and the ability to get on line."There are more than 40 waxcaps in Britain, but in recent years they have been facing a decline and some types are now considered under threat of extinction.The results from the survey will be used to find out where there are large concentrations of waxcaps on National Trust land.These areas will be targeted for more in depth surveys in autumn 2008.