Monotropa uniflora

A comment from Casey of Redneck Mother fame had me thinking about the mystery fungus I posted on my return from Maine. Come to find out, the fungus is not a fungus, but a plant, of the non-chlorophyll-producing variety. It has a litany of evocative names, including ghost plant, corpse plant and fairy smoke.

Internets, meet Monotropa uniflora. There is also a nice write up on Paghat's Garden, with some literary references.

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Amended to add a higher-quality photo than the one from my cell phone.