Project 365 day 324: Unidentified Fungi

I spent twenty minutes in the garden with the macro lens before lunch. Although it was overcast, the light level was significantly better than most days recently, and I managed some reasonable photos of various things I've failed to capture satisfactorily on other occasions, including Tiny Tuesday when I gave up on the macro lens. 

This colony of fungi is on our driveway, which is an old gravel track with lots of moss and weeds, mostly in deep shade between a tall conifer hedge and the front of the house. It has gradually expanded over the past three weeks or so, and, judging by the interesting holes, is starting to deteriorate; I like the slight translucency at the edges of the caps and the jagged teeth where they have broken. There is also a tiny beetle which I only saw when I looked at it on the computer. The fungi have very short stalks and appear to lie on the ground, so it's not really possible to photograph them other than from above, which suits my knees. 

I am running low on extras, so have combined four other photos of dying leaves and bright berries. I seem to be very fixated on transience and decay just now - curling leaves, leaves with holes and blotches, rather manky looking hawthorn berries - but I'm also enjoying the opportunity to frame brightly coloured, blurred backgrounds. This is the most colourful autumn I remember, though I'm also clear that the combination of being at home almost all the time and taking daily photos means I'm observing and noticing more.