Glowing mushrooms in the forest of Yamabaru during rainy season

Glowing mushrooms in the forest of Yamabaru during rainy season

On May 28, Shii no tomoshibi-dake mushrooms emit fantastic light in the forest of Yambaru in Nago. (Photograph provided by Toru Hosonuma)


June 3, 2015 Ryukyu Shimpo

In the forest of Yambaru, Mycena lux-coeli mushrooms (Shii no tomoshibi-dake) light up during the rainy season. Toru Hosonuma, a resident of Motobu, took photos of the mushrooms near the Nago Youth Center in Nago-dake, Nago. About 40 glowing mushrooms, which are about centimeters in height, are growing in groups.

According to the youth center, the mushrooms grow in chinquapin or shii trees. In Okinawa, the mushrooms grow under conditions of high humidity during the rainy season or relatively cool days at the beginning of autumn after continuous rain days. They can be found in Kunigami.

According to Yuichi Oba, assistant processor at Nagoya University Graduate School, these mushrooms grow in Kii peninsula, Kyushu, Izu Islands, and Hachijo-jima but the mechanism for their illumination is not yet known.

Hosonuma said, “I did not expect to see this fantastic scene. I was so glad to see them so close.”

(English translation by T&CT, Hitomi Shinzato)

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