Posted on 05/27/2022 2:26:16 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Mike Roberts claims it's a 'once-in-a-lifetime' find and he couldn't wait to show colleagues and family
A horrified chef was stunned to discover what he believed to be a withered 'zombie hand' stretching from its overgrown grave - only to discover it's a rare fungus called dead man's fingers. Mike Roberts stumbled across the 'horrifying' formation in Pwllycrochan Woods, Colwyn Bay, North Wales, while out walking on a work break.
Images show five stems of xylaria polymorpha mushroom, known as dead man's fingers, poking through the greenery in the 'perfect' shape of a hand. Their white-coloured ends give the creepy impression they're a restless zombie's fingertips reaching out from its grave.
Stunned fungi-enthusiast Mike, 31, claims it's a 'once-in-a-lifetime' find and he couldn't wait to show colleagues and family when he left the woods. His creepy snaps went viral on Facebook earlier this week where they racked up more than 70,000 reactions - with some spooked users saying it's put them off mature walks for good.
Mike, from Llangollen, North Wales, said: "I was shocked when I first saw it. It really looked like a zombie hand reaching out of the ground. You do see [the mushroom] in groups of five pretty often but this one was shaped like a hand with a thumb. It was a once-in-a-lifetime thing.
"It's a mushroom I've seen hundreds of times but to see it in that particular formation was pretty special. I feel lucky to have spotted it. When I got back to work I showed it to people, then I sent it to my mum too."
Mike says he found the 'scary' xylaria polymorpha during its asexual stage when its 'fingers', or stromata, have white tips because they're not firing out spores. The mushroom, common in the UK and Ireland, earned the nickname dead man's fingers for its uncanny resemblance to human digits, but Mike said he's not seen one this realistic before.
He first spotted it in May 2021 but it's recently gone viral on Facebook with users labelling the find 'freaky yet amazing'.
One user commented: "That's horrifying! Imagine coming across that while walking in the woods!!" Another said: "Ok, that would freak me out, even knowing what it was!!"
A third added: "That's the kind of stuff horror stories are written of. If I saw that, I'd never go walking in the woods again!" A fourth said: "Wow I thought it was a hand. It is freaky, but amazing."
“ Stunned fungi-enthusiast Mike, 31, claims it’s a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ find”. Bravo! Give him a hand
Thing’s vacation spot.
I should give you the finger for that...
Let me give you a hand…
I could take a thumbs up.👍
Oookaaaay, I’m outta here. What, Officer? Oh, I, uh, sat in a puddle. Yeah, that’s the ticket...
This makes foot fungus look minor league.
Wow! That is a well named fungus. Probably the source of many Medieval wives tales.
Oh Gus, the gardener’s gone now
And you went with him too
The fungus here
Reminds me of
The fun Gus is having with you
-Benny Hill (My Garden of Love)
That sure looks like the cover of an old Black Sabbath album.
I live... again.
“...during its asexual stage when its ‘fingers’...”
Trying to work in “if you don’t have a good partner, you’d better have a good hand” bridge joke...
Exactly! There it is.
What did Ozzie know about Hillary and when did he know it?
“...during its asexual stage...”
I shudder to think what it looks like during its ‘tranny stage.’
Okay, I’m done.
No one seems to have pinged you.
CALLING THE FOOD NETWORK! Here’s the centerpiece for your Halloween Table!
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