Slug pellet fungus

Well, that's my name for it, as I could not find anything to match it during a brief online search. I did come across a paper discussing bryosymbiotic microfungi, listing Cepahlozia as a host, but there was no named species, nor description. This fungus appears to be present on Calypogeia fissa too, so would appear not be host-specific. If anyone knows anything about this small but striking fungus I'd love to know. For ref, I encountered it during yesterday's lunchtime 'mundane habitat' search - a ditch between colliery spoil and Molinia mire (photo) - spot the Osmunda, the main bryo-elements being Calypogeia arguta, Pellia epiphylla, Sphagnum fimbriatum and Dicranella heteromalla.

North of Pontardawe

A job in Pontardawe yesterday gave me the opportunity to boost a couple of tetrads (SN70H & SN70I). The sandstone crags in Coedalltacham (SN723048) held small quantities of Amphidium mougeotii and Diphyscium foliosum, but despite looking promising held little else of note in this rather dry hanging oakwood dominated by Luzula sylvactica. The most interesting event at this location was when I took off my right welly to remove a stone, then watching it roll and bounce a couple of times before dropping over a 5m cliff. With plenty Holly and Bramble in the shrub layer, it was a very prickly descent to retrieve it!

The bryoflora along the banks of the nearby stream running through more humid, largely acid oak woodland in Cwm Sion (SN729053) was much more diverse, with frequent Amphidium mougeotii and Saccogyna viticulosa  [photo below] and occasional Fissidens pusillus, Jungermannia pumila, fruiting Pseudotaxiphyllum elegans [photos below] and a small quantity of Trichostomum tenuirostre [couple of small shoots in top photo below]. Wefts of Heterocladium heteropterum were a bit confusing as cell shape (4:1 ratio) fit var. heteropterum, but size was much better for var. flaccidum - any advice welcome. Also I'd be grateful if anyone could let me know what the spiky rudimentary leaves are, which to the naked eye looked like dark reddish fuzz growing on rock, under shaded overhangs [bottom two photos below]? [identified by Sam as Tetrodontium brownianum].

 

Finally a quick stop at a bog on Cefn Gwrhyd (SN725064), which looked interesting with frequent Hypericum elodes, Menyanthes trifoliata and nine species of Sphagnum, produced records of Cladopodiella fluitans and Warnstorfia fluitans [photos below]. A Cephalozia looked interesting but I couldn't make it anything other than bicuspidata.