The reserve we go to is left to evolve with little interference from the agency that oversees the area’s green spaces. If a tree is brought down in a windstorm or by decay, unless it blocks the path, it’s left where it falls to break down and eventually feed the forest floor. Insects, vegetation, birds and mammals benefit from all stages of the trees’ existence.
Mushrooms were scarce this year given the dry summer we had but this old tree seemed to provide the perfect conditions for them as well as other vegetation. I liked the “hedge” the mushrooms formed to the hollow in the tree, perhaps it was the entrance to someone’s den.