Despite the cooler weather, fungi are still going strong and the constant flow of fungi photos to our BBC Wales Nature Flickr group is testament to that.

A scientist has just discovered a rare fungi living in a Worcestershire garden - the powdercap strangler.

Only found in a handful of locations around the UK, this parasitic fungus is actually an outgrowth, or gall on another fungus - the earthy powdercap (Cystoderma amiathinum).

I recently blogged about a fungi experience I had when I was lucky enough to be part of the audience for the BBC Radio 4 programme, The Living World - recorded at the National Botanic Garden of Wales.

You can currently listen again to this programme all about fungi and waxcap grasslands on BBC i-Player.

Despite a chill in the air, autumn is a great time for nature and not everything migrates or runs for cover.

Beneath the damp, decaying leaves lie fungi in a variety of shapes, sizes and vibrant colours.

Yesterday I attended a fungi walk at the National Botanic Gardens of Wales, followed by a live broadcast on fungi for the BBC Radio 4 series Saving Species.

It's safe to say that my knowledge of fungi has grown ten fold since yesterday and I came away with a much greater appreciation of these remarkable organisms.

There are an estimated 1.5 million species of fungi in the world, and yet we've only managed to identify around 100,000 of those which is staggering when compared with the fact that 90% of the world's plants have been accounted for.

Fungi, by it's very nature suffers from a bad press but has literally touched us all, in more ways than we realise - from brewing beer to penicillin and from cheese to chocolate - fungi has been involved.

The fly agaric was used by the Vikings as an hallucinogen before battle. Fungi is also apparently responsible for stopping the great army of Alexander The Great who it is now believed, died after eating rye bread, infected with the toxic ergot fungus.

Fungi has a huge reach - from the frozen landscapes of Antarctica to the most humid and tropical rainforests. Closer to home it's found between our toes and inside in our not so sterile fridges.

Fungi play an incredibly important role. They are the ultimate recyclers causing things to rot and decay and without them, we'd be up to our necks in all manner of unpleasantries.

Plants also benefit, providing food and shelter in return for nutrients and in areas of high pollution and toxicity it is fungi which return first, allowing plants to establish themselves on top.

It's not all goodness and light though, fungi do kill trees, create harmful and deadly bacteria and try to destroy our cereal crops with rust fungi but I'm focussing on the positive aspects today.

Wales you'll be pleased to know, is the best location for waxcap fungi in Britain which, in turn is the best in Europe.

Hay on Wye is home to an internationally rare smut fungi known as, smutty naked ladies - be careful when you enter that into a search engine!

Waxcaps are a grassland species and an excellent environmental indicator, only growing in pristine locations, untouched by man and pesticides.

Think wild meadows and country houses with vast expanses of ancient lawn - managed and mown organically for generations.

The unploughed meadows near the farm have over 20 types of waxcap fungi including the rare splendid waxcap with it's brilliant scarlet cap.

I joined Bruce Langridge his colleague Tudor Davies and a host of fungi enthusiasts for a quick woodland foray to see what was around at this time of year.

We're in for a bit of a soaking shortly as low pressure winds up in the Atlantic.

It's great news for all the surfers in Wales though as we're in for some big waves and offshore winds over the next few days, with more unsettled weather arriving next week.

Apologies if you don't surf. My advice - invest in a large umbrella or stay indoors ;)

Hopefully we'll have a bit of sunshine in between though and the winds are expected to lighten for Saturday.

One man's pain is another man's pleasure I guess...which leads me nicely on to golf.

I really hope the Ryder Cup gets under way before the stormy weather arrives as it would be a real shame if the event was a wash out, so fingers crossed it all goes smoothly.

Take a look at our Ryder Cup website for some alternative perspectives on the tournament.

One species however that is enjoying the milder, wetter weather is fungi - and they are absolutely everywhere at the moment!

Mike Warburton sent in this lovely shot of a fly agaric mushroom to our Flickr group:

They may look like something out of Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory but these stunning and rare waxcap fungi are a fairly regular sight at the National Botanic Garden of Wales.

Last Friday I asked you all to get out there and film some fungi. It was a quiet weekend so what the heck?! ;)

They may not be the most exciting things in the world to film but at least they don't move! If you've seen one moving, please stop reading this and go straight to your local GP.

It also makes a nice change to see them in their natural habitat (which you don't always get from a photo), especially if it's a macro shot.

As I suspected, Gale 'queen of fungi' from our BBC Wales Flickr group has pipped everyone to the post and submitted our very first clip:

Tune in to Radio Wales on Friday, 9 Oct from 2pm onwards to catch up with Radio Wales presenter Roy Noble as he chats about a fungi walk in the National Botanical Gardens, the world conker championships (we have a Welsh entrant this year!) and a new book about the birds of Glamorgan.

Too busy to listen to the whole programme? Here's a handy break down:

2.15pm: Tim Bevan, the estate manager of the National Botanic Garden of Wales in Carmarthenshire chats about the Waun Las National Nature Reverse which surrounds the Garden's formal areas and is made up of 400 acres of field, marsh and woodland.

The area is being farmed organically and includes several species of fungi as well a series of walks designed to showcase them.

2.30 - 2.30pm: The World Conker Championships take place on Sunday near the ancient market town of Oundle, Northamptonshire.

The organiser, John Hadman will be chatting to Roy as well as the only Welsh competitor - Andrew Mayes from Ammanford.

Andrew is entering for the 6th time and is hoping for success, as in it's 45 year history there has never been a Welsh winner!

3.00 - 3.30pm: Roy will be talking to Richard Smith about the best places to find both common and exotic birds in Glamorgan so have your binoculars at the ready.

I'll be featuring Roy's programme whenever he covers nature and outdoor topics from now on, so keep an eye out for more features coming soon.

Gull

Listen Live on the Radio Wales website

National Botanical Gardens

I really wish I knew a bit more about theses fungal profusions. Apparently they can even move around!

You can also eat them, of course. But you should be careful as some species are extremely poisonous.

Also with the recent trend in foraging for you own food, some fungi have been hit hard as people have unwittingly removed and potentially damaged fungi communities.

Check out some other fabulous fungi photos on the BBC Wales Nature Flickr group.

I'm currently on location near Petworth Deer Park as we prepare for the latest series of Autumnwatch which starts on BBC Two on Monday 27 October.

This is the week when the fallow deer start their rut and it's a great location in beautiful surroundings.

The park also hosts some other great wildlife to boot with many lizard species and bats present, I've been told.

Over the next few days we'll be filming the deer to see which males are going to be the head honchos of the group and the ones that will most likely end up with all the ladies.

Great science and story behind these beautiful deer. I'll keep you updated as to how we get on.

Only three days to transmission - yikes!