Panaeolus sphinctrinus. Binillautí.

I found this metallic brown mushroom when walking at Binillautí this morning.

Panaeolus papilionaceus var. papilionaceus, also known as Agaricus calosus, Panaeolus papilionaceus, Panaeolus campanulatus, Panaeolus retirugis, and Panaeolus sphinctrinus, and commonly known as Petticoat mottlegill, is a common and widely distributed little brown mushroom that feeds on dung. Panaeolus is edible, however it is neither choice in flavor nor substantial in mass. Contrary to popular belief, most, if not all, collections are not psychoactive. Even if it were psilocybin containing, the amount would be so negligible so as to not even be considered such for practical purposes.

It is known as waraitake, or "laughing mushroom", in Japanese, because the occasional doses of psilocynin  induce wild laughter for 30 minutes to 1 hour, but this is by no means a regular occurrence. The mushroom has been a scheduled drug in Japan since 2003.

 Binillautí. On the Cami de Cavalls from Es Grau to Sa Mesquida.

Camí de Na Furana

In the days when the Port of Mahon acquired the relevance it once had, around Mahon town some tiny agricultural holdings were stablished. They were small farms where horticultural products to meet the demand of the markets in the city, were grown. In Menorca these sets of small buildings are called Casolanies.

The path of "Na Furana" runs through South San Clement and it is the centerpiece of one of those casolanies. The properties that remain there were no large extensive agricultural holdings like the ones in the center and west of the island, but small and active farms. Today they are mostly  residential used.

The small vaulted structure in the left side of the facade is an old oven. Many of these properties had their own space to bake bread both for their own consumption and that of their neighbors.

 This house is called Ca S'Arader. (Arader's Home)

The job of the "arader" specializes in making plows, barriers, fences, railings, balustrades, stools, tables and benches labrador, tool handles, ladders hortalano, Etc. All handmade traditional craft made almost completely with the wood of the autochthonous tree called ullastre.

Still there are some "araders" in Menorca:
in Ferreries
in Sant Lluis

Spanish Traning Ship "Juan Sebastian Elcano"

This morning the training ship of the Royal Spanish Navy "Juan Sebastian Elcano" came into port, from Cagliari.

The "Elcano", as it is known has not been in the Port of Mahon for eleven years and it has shown the formidable spectacle of watching its arrival with the complete Crewformed on deck  with their orange uniforms in the gray, cold morning.

The secretary of the Naval Captaincy of the Port of Mahon has been invited to witness the spectacle from our hotel and from the terraces there we have taken these photographs.

The Elcano was built in 1927 in Cadiz and according the wikipedia it is the third largest Tall Ship in the world.

Wikipedia: Elcano

Cork Oak at Biniedris

Quercus suber, commonly called the cork oak, is a medium-sized, evergreen oak tree in the section Quercus. It is the primary source of cork for wine bottle stoppers and other uses, such as cork flooring. It is native to southwest Europe and northwest Africa.

It grows to up to 20 m (66 ft), although it is typically more stunted in its native environment. The leaves are 4 to 7 cm (1.6 to 2.8 in) long, weakly lobed or coarsely toothed, dark green above, paler beneath, with the leaf margins often downcurved. The acorns are 2 to 3 cm (0.79 to 1.2 in) long, in a deep cup fringed with elongated scales.
 
Cork oaks can live 200 to 250 years, and are considered to be soil builders and their fruits have been shown to have useful insecticidal properties.

Biniedris: Horticultural and livestock farm

Cami de Cavalls. Canutells -Calas Coves-Calan Porter

 

The weather is so weird lately that species that should bloom in April are now blooming in January.

Apple of Sodom is a roundish, perennial shrub to 2 m high, with very spiny and hairy stems and leaves. The yellowish spines are coarse, up to 15 mm long and the hairs are of two types, some star-shaped and some gland-tipped. The leaves are 4-15 cm long and deeply lobed, the lobes rounded and often with wavy or further indented margins. The flowers are pale purple with bright yellow anthers and in a short spray. Each star shaped flower is 1.5-3 cm across with 5 petals and a hairy and prickly calyx. The berries are yellow or mottled eventually turning brown to black and are succulent, globular and 2-3.5 cm across.

 
Native to northern and southern Africa and the Mediterranean, it is now a serious weed of roadsides, creeklines, wasteland and disturbed woodlands. Apple of Sodom is a declared weed in several countries. It flowers from January to May or August to October and the berries are toxic.

Binicalaf Nou

Pancho, posing as a top dog model in the middle of the hike.

Calm sea

 

...at Fornells harbour.

Taula de Binissafullet.

A taula (meaning 'table' in catalan language) is a T-shaped stone monument which are exclusive to Menorca. 

Taulas can be up to 3.7 metres high and consist of a vertical pillar (a monolith or several smaller stones on top of each other) with a horizontal stone lying on it. A U-shaped wall often encloses the structure.
They were built by the Talaiotic Culture between 1000 BC and 300 BC.

Their exact cultural meaning remains unknown, but they probably had religious and/or astronomical purposes. Most of the taulas face south, which seems to suggest some astronomical meaning. Archeologist Michael Hoskin has suggested the taulas may have been part of an ancient healing cult. 

There is great controversy among experts who do not agree about its function,or even in the number of such monuments there is in Menorca, since only a few vestiges remain of some of them.

There is no doubt about the taula at Binissafullet if it is not one of the greatest, it is certainly well restored and preserved.

Omphalotus olearius

 

 

Omphalotus olearius, commonly known as the jack-o'-lantern mushroom, is a poisonous orange gilled mushroom that to an untrained eye appears similar to some chanterelles. It is notable for its bioluminiscent properties. It is found in woodland areas in Europe, where it grows on decaying stumps, buried roots or at the base of hardwood trees.