Fungi	fungi       Pretty Fungi, such as the Earthstars and Scarlet Elf Cup, spellbind people. We are attracted by other Fungi such as the bright red Fly Agaric mushroom, and the unusual Bird's Nest fungi. Fungi reproduce by producing spores. These are tiny cells inside a protective coating, which grow into new Fungi. Some fungi can survive times when the weather turns hot and dry, by producing protective coatings for their spores.
	What are Fungi? Fungi is the name given to a strange group of living things including mushrooms, toadstools, moulds and thousands of other weird and wonderful things. It's safe to say that if you see something strange growing outside, and you're not sure what it is, it's probably a fungus. Unlike plants, Fungi cannot produce their own food. Instead they absorb nutrients from their surroundings. Types of Fungi can be very different, for example they can be colourful and jelly-like, brown and slimy, green and dusty or tall and white. They are a truly fascinating group of organisms and have been studied by people for hundreds of years.
		Some fungi are good to eat, for example, the Parasol mushroom, and the blue mould that gives Stilton cheese its strong taste. We also use yeast, which is a fungus, to produce bread and beer. Others like the Death Cap and the Destroying Angel mushrooms are deadly poisonous.
	Some fungi can cure human illnesses. For example, penicillin is an important medical drug, produced by a fungus, and used to kill harmful bacteria in humans.
	Further Fungi Facts: Where do Fungi Live? Are Fungi Important? What do Fungi Love? Fungi Reproduction How do Fungi Feed? Fungi Folklore What's the difference between mushrooms and toadstools? A little about lichens
	Where do Fungi Live? Fungi love damp areas. They can be found nearly everywhere, and you can find them springing up in woods, parks, gardens and mountain-tops. Some fungi live tangled up amongst the roots of trees. You might also find them in places where you do not want to find them, like in your fruit bowl, turning oranges green and dusty, or in damp bathrooms growing on walls in black mouldy patches. Fungi can also grow inside or on the outside of plants and animals, causing diseases, such as Dutch Elm Disease, or athletes foot in humans.
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	Are Fungi Important? Fungi are important because they help to process dead plant and animal matter through decay. For example, fungi help turn a cow pat into soil.   Fungi are also the life-line for many plants. Lots of string-like fungi live tangled up with a plant's roots, and help to pass on nutrients. This benefits the plant as well as the fungus. This is known as a mycorrhizal association. It is a symbiotic relationship. The fungus that produces penicillin is very important and has saved many lives, because it kills harmful bacteria. Fungi are also used to make bread, blue cheeses and beer.
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	What do Fungi Love? Fungi love moist and shady habitats. They do not need the sun in order to grow, unlike plants.
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	Fungi Reproduction Fungi reproduce in many different ways. They can reproduce sexually and asexually. When fungi reproduce sexually, the male and female cells fuse, to produce spores inside a "fruiting body" such as a mushroom. Spores are tiny cells inside a protective coating. They are unlike the seeds found in seed-plants, because they do not contain an embryo, and because they do not have much of a food reserve. The spores are dispersed throughout the environment. If deposited in a suitable place, a spore will grow into a new fungus. Only a few spores manage to land in a suitable place and survive to grow into a new individual. The adult fungus therefore produces millions of spores, to increase the chances of producing some survivors. Fungi can also reproduce asexually. When you see mould growing on bread, oranges or on old leather, you are looking at millions of tiny spores growing on little stalks. These mould fungi are reproducing by simply making little copies of themselves. Fungi also reproduce asexually by vegetative growth, when a new fungus grows straight out of the parent fungus. This takes place under the surface of the soil, on rotting logs or on other substances on which the fungus lives. Here are some examples of Fungi Reproduction: Mushroom Reproduction Macroscopic Fungi Reproduction Puffball Reproduction
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	Mushroom Reproduction: Mushrooms produce spores which are spread and grow into new fungi. The mushroom is the "fruiting body" of the fungus. Despite being called a "fruiting body", the mushroom does not produce fruit, but produces spores. If you see a mushroom growing, you are only looking at a small part of the entire fungus. Long strands of fungi spread out underneath the soil. As they grow, the strands absorb nutrients and water from their surroundings, providing energy for more growth. Eventually, mushrooms pop up, to spread spores through the air, many of which will land and grow into new fungi. Some types of mushroom appear growing on the ground in a circle, in what is known as a "Fairy Ring".
	This is because the main fungus spreads outwards underneath the soil, like a growing puddle, and mushrooms pop up at the edges. The mushrooms are the reproductive parts of the fungus. If you look underneath the cap of a mushroom, you will see lots of slits, known as "gills". Spores grow on the surface of these gills. The spores are spread through the air, or by small animals, and grow into new fungi where they land. Most mushroom-like "fruiting bodies" only last a few days.   Microscopic Fungi Reproduction: Most fungi do not produce mushrooms. There are thousands of different types of mould fungi. Each of these fungi grow a spore-producing structure, and just one or two little strands to absorb nutrients and water. Their tiny spores can be found everywhere - in dust, soil, dung, plant and animal remains, in rivers and the edge of the sea. They have even been found miles up in the atmosphere. When they land in a favourable environment, they will develop into new fungi.
	Puffball Reproduction: A Puffball is an alien-looking, round and leathery fungus. When fully grown, it is the size of a human head. A Puffball is full of a fine powder, made of little spores. When it's good and ready, a hole in the ball pops open. Then, when raindrops splash onto the leathery ball, the spores are puffed out through the hole. The smoky-looking clouds of spores waft through the air to new ground. Puffballs are also known as "the devil's snuffbox".
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	How do Fungi Feed? Fungi absorb food from their surroundings. Depending on what type of fungi they are, their surroundings could be soil, wood or other types of living or dead plant or animal material. Many fungi grow stringy strands called hyphae (sounds like "hi-fay"). These strands absorb nutrients and water from their surroundings, giving energy to the fungi for further growth and reproduction. You can see some of these strands for yourself, if you look for white threads in leaf mould or on the underside of rotting logs. This mat of fungal hyphae is called a fungal mycelium. There are 3 main types of fungal feeding: · Saprophytic (sounds like "sap-row-fit-ick) · Parasitic (sounds like para-sit-ick) · Symbiotic (sounds like "sim-by-ott-ick)
	Saprophytic Fungi Most fungi feed in a saprophytic way. This means that they feed on the dead remains of plants or animals, or on the waste materials (such as dung) of other living things. These fungi help to get rid of organic waste. They are often found in woodlands, where the floor is covered with massive amounts of dead plant material such as fallen leaves, twigs and logs. The digestion of such waste material is very important. Without this, the waste would pile up higher and higher into a permanent rubbish heap. Many mushrooms feed in this way. The Ink Cap mushrooms, for example, are common on rubbish heaps. Dung Fungi carry out the important job of getting rid of dung, and turning it into soil.
	Parasitic Fungi These fungi do not wait until a plant or animal is dead before feeding on it. Instead, parasitic fungi feed on other organisms while they are still alive. As you can imagine, many of these parasites cause serious damage to trees and other plants.
	The parasitic fungi, which grow on and inside humans and other animals, cause problems such as athlete's foot and ringworm. Some of the parasitic fungi grow large "fruiting bodies". The largest type of these is the Bracket Fungi, which attack mature trees. These fungi grow inside trees, and then large flat shelf-like structures develop on the outside, and can be easily spotted. Some fungi, like the Dry Rot Fungus, which attacks wood, have many hyphae strands matted together for strength. Together, these strands can push through the toughest wood and brick, causing damage to trees, furniture or buildings. One very damaging parasitic fungus causes Dutch Elm Disease. This fungus grows inside elm trees, and causes blockages, so that water cannot be transported through the plant. Elm trees infected with Dutch Elm disease will die. Symbiotic Fungi Although these fungi do live on or inside other living things, they do not cause damage. The fungi, and the organism on which it lives, both receive benefits from living with each other. Lots of fungi live in such harmonious "give and take" relationships with trees, and other plants including many orchids. The fungi grow underground, and their threadlike "hyphae" grow into a thick mat known as a mycelium (sounds like "my-seal-ee-um). This mycelium absorbs nutrients and water from the soil and passes what it doesn't' need through into the roots of the tree. Such relationships between fungi and trees, are known as mycorrhiza (sounds like my-cor-rise-a). Another intimate relationship that works very well, is that found when we look at Lichen. This grows as a flat, green or yellow growth on the surface of rocks and trees. Lichen is a fungus and an alga growing together, helping each other to survive and grow. These are both examples of symbiotic relationships.
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	Fungi Folklore Mushrooms often suddenly appear, as if from nowhere. This is probably why there are so many magical tales surrounding them. Have you ever seen mushrooms growing in a circle? People used to think that fairies, elves and goblins danced the night away on the circular "dance-floor" within these so-called fairy rings. It was thought that the mushrooms were used as little stools and chairs. Others believed that fairy rings grew where lightning had struck the ground, or that haystacks, ants and moles were the cause of the rings! Other stories described how the circular mark had been left behind by the devil, who had been out churning butter in the night. It was once believed that evil spirits ruined crops such as potato, apple and tomato. In fact, various types of microscopic fungi had destroyed the crops.
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	What's the difference between Mushrooms and Toadstools? There is no definition or rule to explain any particular difference between mushrooms and toadstools. Mushrooms and toadstools are both the fruiting bodies of the fungus, which produces spores for reproduction. In the meantime, the rest of the fungus grows underground.
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	A Little about Lichens Lichens are strange. They grow in flat green or bright yellow circles on tree trunks or on stones. Sometimes, they have little wavy bits sticking out of them. Some people think lichen is a fungus, and some people think it is an alga. But the truth is, that it is both!! It is made up of two types of organism, which live together, and depend on each other, in a symbiotic.
	Together, the fungi and algae can survive harsh conditions, such as bare rock in the cold Arctic, or even on the busy pavements in towns.	A lichen is mostly a fungus, but it also has little algae cells growing inside it. This is incredible. It means that fungi and algae are living together in harmony, as close partners, as if they were one thing. Algae can produce food from the sunlight, which is used by both the fungi and the algae. The fungi provides protection, and can also absorb nutrients from the surface.
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