False Puffball - Reticularia lycoperdon

It starts off as a white globular mass about the size of half a golf ball, and then develops a silver-grey papery skin beneath which the brown spores develop.ÿWhen the seeds have been dispersed all they leave behind is a faint brown 'spore print' patch on the tree bark.

On tree bark.

Spring.

Widespread and fairly frequent in Britain.

Fairly frequent in Leicestershire and Rutland.