Deep in the damp, native forest, on a rotting log, something blue catches the light. The fairy bonnet is a tiny, brilliant blue mushroom that grows on rotting logs and branches. The cap is translucent and grooved, often with a paler margin, one to two centimetres across. The stalk is sticky and blue, two to three centimetres tall. The whole thing is delicate, ephemeral, and intensely blue. It is one of the most beautiful and photogenic mushrooms in New Zealand. The blue colour fades with age, turning to pale blue, then grey, then brown. Catch it young, or miss it entirely. It grows in small groups on well-rotted wood, in the deepest shade of the forest. The Maori name is not recorded. Another small fungus, overlooked by the people who came before, noticed only by those who walk the forest floor with their eyes down. Not edible. Too small. Too insubstantial. But beautiful, in a tiny, blue, fungal way. The blue colour is a pigment called azulene, the same compound found in some mushrooms and in chamomile oil. It is rare in nature, which makes the fairy bonnet even more special. Photographers travel long distances to find it. A macro lens, a steady hand, and a lot of patience. The reward is a tiny blue bonnet on a rotting log, a flash of colour in the deep green bush. That is the fairy bonnet. Small, blue, and briefly bright. A mushroom that fades as it ages, like a bruise healing or a memory softening. The forest does not notice. But someone walking slowly, looking closely, might.