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Honey fungus mushrooms or bootlace mushrooms (Armillaria mellea). This fungus is found on or around the trunks of coniferous and deciduous trees. It is a tree parasite and the damage it causes is fatal. The fungus spreads by long black bootlace-like strands called rhizomorphs (not seen) which can grow beneath bark, along roots and through the soil. Honey fungus mushrooms grow from summer to early winter and are edible once cooked. (KEYSTONE/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY/SHEILA TERRY)