Popping up for Halloween

Right on time for Halloween, a few spooky characters have started turning up at our place.

Some, like the one above, have come dressed like the Grim Reaper…

while others have chosen a more ghostly costume.

I recognized the “Grim Reaper” as a Black elfin saddle mushroom (Helvella lacunosa) – we’ve had them visit in past years. But the ghostly look of the others puzzled me at first. And then I found the likely answer: according to Wikipedia, Black elfin saddles can have white stems when they’re young, and occasionally they have white caps. So I’m guessing these are Black elfin saddle youngsters, out for a lively bit of trick or treating.

No matter which of the two costumes they’re wearing, they all seem just a little bit spooky!