Reptile & Amphibian Forums

while in the woods i found some type of what i believe to be fungus on trees, dead trees only, im not sure what kind it is, its a tan/whitish color on top and a darker brown on the bottom. it kind of resembles an awning. does anyone know what this is? anyhow, ive put it in dart tanks before but within a month or so the humidity gets to it and turns it black and it gets totally destroyed. does anyone know if i could coat these with something that wouldnt harm the frogs? i tried something called duraclear made by decoart from a local craft store that said it was non toxic, but i put it on a few peices last week, it coated them nicely but still has a pretty strong smell so im hesitant to put it in any tanks. so if anyone has any ideas, please let me know.

i also wanted to built some stone backgrounds possibly used for a waterfall. do i need to get any special type of cement? would a quick krete type work?

thanks for all your help. anthony.

I wouldn't bother to try to preserve these shelf fungi artificially if they won't grow naturally in your vivarium. Did you introduce them along with the dead wood and all? Just try stuff, and when it doesn't work, let it alone and see what happens next. If you introduced them dead wood and all, and they died off, you may still be in for some other surprises if you have patience for surprises that may take a year or more to show up, and don't care what form they take. If you try to preserve their structure by virtually sealing them off in a lifeless state for looks, you might as well just go for plastic plants. These fungi are more complex than they appear. The mycelium from a fruiting body of any mushroom type may even originate from the soil substrate many yards away before it climbs a dead tree and makes its fruiting brackets, perhaps years later. They are nearly always "untransplantable" as we find them, especially temperate zone fungi into a tropical environment. Keep it, watch and see what happens next.
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Patty
Pahsimeroi, Idaho

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