Portal:Fungi

The Fungi Portal

A fungus is any member of a large group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. The Fungi are classified as a kingdom that is separate from plants and animals. The discipline of biology devoted to the study of fungi is known as mycology or fungal biology, which is historically regarded as a branch of botany, even though genetic studies have shown that fungi are more closely related to animals than to plants. Fungi reproduce via spores and grow as hyphae, mycelia, and further specialized structures. Fungal spores are often produced on specialized structures or in fruiting bodies, such as the head of a mushroom. Abundant worldwide, most fungi are mostly invisible to the naked eye because of the small size of their structures, and their cryptic lifestyles in soil, on dead matter, and as symbionts of plants, animals, or other fungi. Fungi perform an essential role in the decomposition of organic matter and have fundamental roles in nutrient cycling and exchange. They have long been used as a direct source of food, such as mushrooms and truffles, as a leavening agent for bread, and in fermentation of various food products, such as wine, beer, and soy sauce.

Since the 1940s, fungi have been used for the production of antibiotics, and, more recently, various enzymes produced by fungi are used industrially and in detergents. Fungi are also used as biological agents to control weeds and pests. Many species produce bioactive compounds called mycotoxins, such as alkaloids and polyketides, that are toxic to animals including humans. The fruiting structures of a few species are consumed recreationally or in traditional ceremonies as a source of psychotropic compounds. Fungi can break down manufactured materials and buildings, and become significant pathogens of humans and other animals. Losses of crops due to fungal diseases or food spoilage can have a large impact on human food supplies and local economies. Despite their importance on human affairs, little is known of the true biodiversity of Kingdom Fungi, which has been estimated at around 1.5 million species, with about 5% of these having been formally classified.

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Armillaria gallica (synonymous with A. bulbosa and A. lutea) is a species of honey mushroom in the family Physalacriaceae of the order Agaricales. The species is a common and ecologically important wood-decay fungus that can live as a saprobe, or as an opportunistic parasite in weakened tree hosts to cause root or butt rot. It has a widespread distribution, being found in temperate regions of Asia, North America, and Europe, and forms fruit bodies singly or in groups in soil or rotting wood. The fungus has been inadvertently introduced to South Africa. Armillaria gallica has had a confusing taxonomy, due in part to historical difficulties encountered in distinguishing between similar Armillaria species. The fungus received international attention in the early 1990s when an individual colony living in a Michigan forest was reported to cover an area of 15 hectares (37 acres), weigh at least 9,500 kilograms (21,000 lb), and be 1,500 years old. This individual is popularly known as the "humungous fungus", and is a tourist attraction and inspiration for an annual mushroom-themed festival in Crystal Falls.

Armillaria gallica is a largely subterranean fungus, and it produces fruit bodies that are up to about 10 cm (3.9 in) in diameter, yellow-brown, and covered with small scales. On the underside of the caps are gills that are white to creamy or pale orange. The stem may be up to 10 cm (3.9 in) long, with a white cobwebby ring that divides the color of the stem into pale orange to brown above, and lighter-colored below. The fungus can develop an extensive system of underground root-like structures, called rhizomorphs, that help it to efficiently decompose dead wood in temperate broadleaf and mixed forests. It has been the subject of considerable scientific research due to its importance as a plant pathogen, its ability to bioluminesce, its unusual life cycle, and its ability to form large and long-lived colonies.

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Hygrophorus eburneus, commonly known as the ivory waxy cap or the cowboy's handkerchief, is a species of edible mushroom in the waxgill family of fungi. It is widespread in Europe and North America, and has also been collected in northern Africa. The fruit bodies are medium-sized, pure white, and when wet are covered in a layer of slime thick enough to make the mushroom difficult to pick up. The gills are broadly attached to the stem or running down it; as the family name suggests, they feel waxy when rubbed between the fingers. Like all Hygrophorus species, the fungus is mycorrzhizal—a symbiotic association whereby the underground fungal mycelia penetrate and exchange nutrients with tree roots. They are common in a variety of forest types, where they grow on the ground in thickets or grassy areas. Hygrophorus eburneus is the type species of the genus Hygrophorus. A number of biologically active chemicals have been purified from the fruit bodies of the fungus, including fatty acids with bactericidal and fungicidal activity.

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Credit: JJ Harrison

A mature Amanita muscaria mushroom, photographed in Mt Field National Park, Tasmania, Australia.

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Did you know?

... that species in the fungal genus Wynnea (W. americana, pictured) have asci that are capped by a hinged operculum?
... that species in the fungal genus Ameliella have been found in the Skibotn area in central Northern Norway, a hotspot of lichen species diversity?
... that upon coming in contact with an alkali solution, the hairs of the fungus Microstoma floccosum will swell and then dissolve?
... that the grisette is enjoyed by cows?
... that the yellow earth tongue has been described as a fungus one is likely to find while looking for something else?

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General images - show new batch

The following are images from various fungi-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Psilocybe zapotecorum, a hallucinogenic mushroom (from Mushroom)
Image 2Pityriasis versicolor (from Fungal infection)
Image 3Agaricus bitorquis (the "pavement mushroom") emerging through asphalt concrete in summer (from Mushroom)
Image 4Fungi within Zygomycota form progametangia with suspensors during mating (from Mating in fungi)
Image 5Pennate diatom from an Arctic meltpond, infected with two chytrid-like [zoo-]sporangium fungal pathogens (in false-colour red). Scale bar = 10 μm. (from Marine fungi)
Image 6
Diagram of a mycoloop (fungus loop)
Parasitic chytrids can transfer material from large inedible phytoplankton to zooplankton. Chytrids zoospores are excellent food for zooplankton in terms of size (2–5 μm in diameter), shape, nutritional quality (rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids and cholesterols). Large colonies of host phytoplankton may also be fragmented by chytrid infections and become edible to zooplankton. (from Marine fungi)
Image 7Morphological characteristics of the caps of mushrooms (from Mushroom)
Image 8Agaricus bisporus, one of the most widely cultivated and consumed mushrooms (from Mushroom)
Image 9Chytrid parasites of marine diatoms. (A) Chytrid sporangia on Pleurosigma sp. The white arrow indicates the operculate discharge pore. (B) Rhizoids (white arrow) extending into diatom host. (C) Chlorophyll aggregates localized to infection sites (white arrows). (D and E) Single hosts bearing multiple zoosporangia at different stages of development. The white arrow in panel E highlights branching rhizoids. (F) Endobiotic chytrid-like sporangia within diatom frustule. Bars = 10 μm. (from Marine fungi)
Image 10Group photograph taken at a meeting of the British Mycological Society in 1913 (from Mycology)
Image 11Pholiota squarrosa growing at the base of a tree (from Mushroom)
Image 12A tinder fungus, Fomes fomentarius (from Mushroom)
Image 13The blue gills of Lactarius indigo, a milk-cap mushroom (from Mushroom)
Image 14Agaricus bisporus, a cultivated edible mushroom with various names including "button mushroom", "portobello" and "champignon" (from Mushroom)
Image 15Workup algorithm of fungal infection at a microbiology lab at a New England community hospital. (from Fungal infection)
Image 16Ferula mushroom in Bingöl, Turkey. This is an edible type of mushroom. (from Mushroom)
Image 17Mature Mycena leaiana, a kind of Mushroom, in Mount Field National Park. (from Mycology)
Image 18Boletus edulis, also known as "cep", an edible wild bolete found in Europe (from Mushroom)
Image 19Neurospora crassa life cycle. The haploid mycelium reproduces asexually by two processes: (1) simple proliferation of existing mycelium, and (2) formation of conidia (macro- and micro-) which can be dispersed and then germinate to produce new mycelium. In the sexual cycle, mating can only occur between individual strains of different mating type, A and a. Fertilization occurs by the passage of nuclei of conidia or mycelium of one mating type into the protoperithecia of the opposite mating type through the trichogyne. Fusion of the nuclei of opposite mating types occurs within the protoperithecium to form a zygote (2N) nucleus. (from Mating in fungi)
Image 20Lycoperdon perlatum (the "common puffball") has a glebal hymenium; when young, the interior is white, but it becomes brown containing powdery spores as the fungus matures. (from Mushroom)
Image 21
Lichen covered rocks
(from Marine fungi)
Image 22Young Amanita phalloides "death cap" mushrooms, with a matchbox for size comparison (from Mushroom)
Image 23Phylogenetic and symbiogenetic tree of living organisms, showing a view of the origins of eukaryotes and prokaryotes (from Marine fungi)
Image 24Tinea corporis (from Fungal infection)
Image 25The photochemistry of vitamin D₂ biosynthesis (from Medicinal uses of fungi)
Image 26
Roles of fungi in the marine carbon cycle
Roles of fungi in the marine carbon cycle by processing phytoplankton-derived organic matter. Parasitic fungi, as well as saprotrophic fungi, directly assimilate phytoplankton organic carbon. By releasing zoospores, the fungi bridge the trophic linkage to zooplankton, known as the mycoloop. By modifying the particulate and dissolved organic carbon, they can affect bacteria and the microbial loop. These processes may modify marine snow chemical composition and the subsequent functioning of the biological carbon pump. (from Marine fungi)
Image 27Close-up cross section of mushroom gills (from Mushroom)
Image 28The red yeast rice fungus, Monascus purpureus, can synthesize three statins. (from Medicinal uses of fungi)
Image 29Onychomycosis (from Fungal infection)
Image 30Amanita jacksonii buttons emerging from their universal veils (from Mushroom)
Image 31Morphological diversity of fungi collected from a marine sponge species, Ircinia variabilis (from Marine fungi)
Image 32
Mycoloop links between phytoplankton and zooplankton
Chytrid‐mediated trophic links between phytoplankton and zooplankton (mycoloop). While small phytoplankton species can be grazed upon by zooplankton, large phytoplankton species constitute poorly edible or even inedible prey. Chytrid infections on large phytoplankton can induce changes in palatability, as a result of host aggregation (reduced edibility) or mechanistic fragmentation of cells or filaments (increased palatability). First, chytrid parasites extract and repack nutrients and energy from their hosts in form of readily edible zoospores. Second, infected and fragmented hosts including attached sporangia can also be ingested by grazers (i.e. concomitant predation). (from Marine fungi)
Image 33Salmon with fungal disease (from Marine fungi)
Image 34Coprinopsis atramentaria, commonly known as the "ink cap" (from Mushroom)
Image 35
Driftwood
(from Marine fungi)
Image 36Oral candidiasis (from Fungal infection)
Image 37Amanita muscaria, a psychotropic mushroom commonly known as "fly agaric" (from Mushroom)
Image 38Amanita muscaria, the most easily recognised "toadstool", is frequently depicted in fairy stories and on greeting cards. It is often associated with gnomes. (from Mushroom)
Image 39Leucocoprinus birnbaumii, commonly known as the "flowerpot parasol", at various stages of development (from Mushroom)
Image 40Ganoderma lingzhi (from Mushroom)
Image 41There are over 100 psychoactive mushroom species of genus Psilocybe native to regions all around the world. (from Mushroom)
Image 42Fungi within Ascomycota form ascogonium and antheridium with trichogyne bridge (from Mating in fungi)
Image 43Maitake, a polypore mushroom (from Mushroom)
Image 44Eumycetoma (from Fungal infection)
Image 45A mushroom (probably Russula brevipes) parasitized by Hypomyces lactifluorum resulting in a "lobster mushroom" (from Mushroom)
Image 46Morchella elata asci viewed with phase contrast microscopy (from Mushroom)
Image 47Typical mating fusion of two compatible monokaryons in Basidiomycota (from Mating in fungi)