Fungi are found almost everywhere - and they can take far stranger forms than the simple stem and cap you might find in the supermarket. Let's take a look at...
The fruiting bodies of this fungus are typically dark with a paler segment at the very tip, adorned with bumps that look like the joints of a finger. The underlying flesh of the mushroom is tough and white, with a black outer layer that bears the spores. They tend to grow on buried deadwood from broadleaved trees.
Xylaria polymorpha is joined in death by Xylaria longipes or dead moll's fingers, a daintier but otherwise similar fungus that favors sycamore wood.
It's unknown exactly why the fungi luminesce - though one theory is that it might attract arthropods that can help disperse spores. Researchers found that a glowing fake mushroom attracted a crowd of insect admirers far more than an unlit control trap.
They come in three broad types - the protostelida, dictyosteids and myxogastria. Protostelida are usually microscopic and produce fruiting bodies like any normal fungus. Dictyostelids live individually as amoeba-like creatures but join together into a larger slug-like creature when then need to produce spores. Finally the myxogastria are single cell organisms that can spread to cover meters of ground.
Slime molds are interesting in a number of ways, able to creep along the ground in the search for food. They can also harden into a sclerotia or cyst, putting themselves in suspended animation and "reactivating" when living conditions are more favorable.
They have a number of senses, including chemotaxis (an ability to sniff out chemicals to eat) and phototaxis (or the ability to detect light levels.) They can also sense the hardness of an object (durotaxis) which helps them pick out rotten wood. The slimes are capable of solving mazes by leaving a chemical trail behind them that tells them where they have already been, and can be trained to approach something it would normally avoid (like caffeine) for a food reward.
Perhaps the strangest thing about slime molds is how they are being used to predict the underlying structure of the universe. Scientists believe that filaments of gas and gravity span the gaps between galaxies, and that the filaments produced by hungry slime molds form an eerily similar pattern. Researchers have even used algorithms based on slime mold behavior (using food to represent galaxies) to emulate this "cosmic web" and search for dark matter.
The starfish fungus (Aseroe rubra) is a stinkhorn and has a deeply unpleasant scent - the scientific name contains "red," "disgust" and "juice." It is one of the strangest looking fungi out there, consisting of a bloated white cylinder capped with red tentacles arranged in the shape of a star. If you have ever read the works of author H.P. Lovecraft, you might draw comparisons to some of his more alien creations!
The favored prey of the powdercap strangler is the earthy powdercap. The strangler infiltrates a victim and takes over the fruiting body, bursting out of the mushroom stalk in place of the normal cap. The end result looks as though someone has grafted two fungi together!
Puffballs are actually rather useful mushrooms, and the giant puffball is no exception. It has seen use as a styptic (causing wounds to stop bleeding) and as a meal. Because of their slow burning speed, they can also be used as tinder or as a source of smoke to calm bees!
- Dead man's fingers
- Fungi that glow in the dark
- Mold that crawls...and learns
- The disgusting starfish fungus
- The fungus that replaces mushroom caps
- The sheep-sized puffball
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| Some puffball mushrooms can grow disturbingly large... (DomenicBlair) |
Dead Man's Fingers
Growing on dead and buried hardwood, Xylaria polymorpha gives the unsettling impression of the blackened fingers of a rotten corpse reaching from beneath the soil. They can be found in Europe and North America, but are common in Britain and Ireland.The fruiting bodies of this fungus are typically dark with a paler segment at the very tip, adorned with bumps that look like the joints of a finger. The underlying flesh of the mushroom is tough and white, with a black outer layer that bears the spores. They tend to grow on buried deadwood from broadleaved trees.
Xylaria polymorpha is joined in death by Xylaria longipes or dead moll's fingers, a daintier but otherwise similar fungus that favors sycamore wood.
Glowing Fungal Fairy-Lights
With a vivid green glow, certain Mycena could convince you that you had wandered into fairyland. They are not the only examples of bioluminescent mushrooms either.It's unknown exactly why the fungi luminesce - though one theory is that it might attract arthropods that can help disperse spores. Researchers found that a glowing fake mushroom attracted a crowd of insect admirers far more than an unlit control trap.
The Incredible Ambulatory Slime Mold
Despite the name, the slime mold is not truly a fungus - nor is it an animal or plant. Instead they are classed as mycetozoa or fungus-animals. They can often be seen as a spot of orange or yellow slime on grass, trees or leaf-litter.They come in three broad types - the protostelida, dictyosteids and myxogastria. Protostelida are usually microscopic and produce fruiting bodies like any normal fungus. Dictyostelids live individually as amoeba-like creatures but join together into a larger slug-like creature when then need to produce spores. Finally the myxogastria are single cell organisms that can spread to cover meters of ground.
Slime molds are interesting in a number of ways, able to creep along the ground in the search for food. They can also harden into a sclerotia or cyst, putting themselves in suspended animation and "reactivating" when living conditions are more favorable.
They have a number of senses, including chemotaxis (an ability to sniff out chemicals to eat) and phototaxis (or the ability to detect light levels.) They can also sense the hardness of an object (durotaxis) which helps them pick out rotten wood. The slimes are capable of solving mazes by leaving a chemical trail behind them that tells them where they have already been, and can be trained to approach something it would normally avoid (like caffeine) for a food reward.
Perhaps the strangest thing about slime molds is how they are being used to predict the underlying structure of the universe. Scientists believe that filaments of gas and gravity span the gaps between galaxies, and that the filaments produced by hungry slime molds form an eerily similar pattern. Researchers have even used algorithms based on slime mold behavior (using food to represent galaxies) to emulate this "cosmic web" and search for dark matter.
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| Slime molds can creep along the ground... (adege) |
The Starfish Fungus
A native of Australia found by the 1792 D'Entrecasteaux expedition to Southern Tasmania, this fungus has since travelled across the world - even reaching Britain.The starfish fungus (Aseroe rubra) is a stinkhorn and has a deeply unpleasant scent - the scientific name contains "red," "disgust" and "juice." It is one of the strangest looking fungi out there, consisting of a bloated white cylinder capped with red tentacles arranged in the shape of a star. If you have ever read the works of author H.P. Lovecraft, you might draw comparisons to some of his more alien creations!
The Body-Snatching Strangler
An insidious body snatcher found rarely in Britain, Ireland, Europe, Canada and the USA, the powdercap strangler (Squamanita paradoxa) is a mycoparasite - meaning that it attacks other mushrooms.The favored prey of the powdercap strangler is the earthy powdercap. The strangler infiltrates a victim and takes over the fruiting body, bursting out of the mushroom stalk in place of the normal cap. The end result looks as though someone has grafted two fungi together!
The Sheep-Sized Puffball
Puffball fungi are hollow, and when jostled (or even when struck with drops of rain) they emit clouds of spores. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes, but perhaps the most impressive is the giant puffball (Calvatia gigantea) which can reach 80cm across. It's not uncommon for it to be mistaken for a small sheep at a distance.Puffballs are actually rather useful mushrooms, and the giant puffball is no exception. It has seen use as a styptic (causing wounds to stop bleeding) and as a meal. Because of their slow burning speed, they can also be used as tinder or as a source of smoke to calm bees!
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