Emily Johnson
The largest mushroom ever discovered is the Armillaria ostoyae, also known as the honey mushroom. This giant fungus was found in the Malheur National Forest in Oregon's Strawberry Mountains and is believed to be between 2,000 and 8,000 years old. Covering an area of 3.5 square miles (9.1 square kilometres), it is the largest single living organism in the world, weighing in at a massive 35,000 tons.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Common Name | Honey Mushroom |
| Scientific Name | Armillaria ostoyae (synonym A. solidipes) |
| Area Covered | 3.5 square miles (9.1 km^2) or 2,200 acres (910 ha) |
| Weight | 35,000 tons |
| Age | 2,400 years old, could be as old as 8,000-10,000 years |
| Location | Malheur National Forest, Oregon, US |
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What You'll Learn
Armillaria ostoyae, the honey mushroom
Armillaria ostoyae, also known as the honey mushroom, is a pathogenic species of fungus in the family Physalacriaceae. It is found in the cooler regions of the northern hemisphere, particularly in the forests of British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest in North America, as well as in parts of Asia. This fungus is a parasite that invades the sapwood of trees and spreads through black rhizomorphs ("shoestrings"), which can wrap around tree roots and infiltrate under tree bark. It is often found on host coniferous trees and can cause root disease, leading to tree mortality.
Armillaria ostoyae is notable for its massive size and growth. In 1998, a discovery in Oregon's Blue Mountains revealed that all the mushrooms in a 2,385-acre area were genetically identical clones of a single individual. This giant fungus covers an estimated area of 3.5 square miles (9.1 km2) or 2,200 acres, and may weigh up to 35,000 tons. It is considered the largest fungal colony in the world and one of the largest known organisms by area. The age of this organism is estimated to be around 8,000 years old.
The honey mushroom has a distinctive appearance with decurrent gills and a well-developed ring on the stipe. The gills leave a white spore print. The subterranean parts of the organism produce "'honey mushrooms" as surface fruits during the autumn season. These mushrooms have cream-brown colours, prominent cap scales, and a golden colour that gives them their common name.
The Armillaria ostoyae fungus has significant ecological impacts. Its massive size and parasitic nature can threaten forests and trees. Scientists are working on methods to control its spread, such as planting competitive mushroom species or removing infected trees and replacing them with more resistant species. The discovery of this giant fungus has also sparked debates about the definition of an individual organism, as it challenges our understanding of the complexity and interconnectedness of fungal colonies.
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World's largest living organism
The world's largest living organism is a specimen of Posidonia australis seagrass, also known as Poseidon's ribbon weed. It is located in Shark Bay, off the coast of Western Australia, and covers an area of approximately 200 square kilometres or 77 square miles. This is equivalent to around 28,000 soccer fields or more than 450 times the size of Vatican City, the smallest country in the world. This seagrass meadow is not only the largest living organism but also the largest plant by area, stretching about 180 kilometres or 112 miles from White Island in Shark Bay's western gulf to the Faure Sill in the eastern gulf.
However, if we are considering singular entities, the largest living organism is a single specimen of honey mushroom (Armillaria ostoyae), also known as the "Humongous Fungus". This organism was discovered in the Malheur National Forest in the Strawberry Mountains of eastern Oregon, USA, and occupies a total area of 965 hectares or 2,385 acres, equivalent to 1,350 soccer fields. The honey mushroom is well known for its glowing surface, caused by bioluminescent bacteria, and most of its tissue is around 1 metre or 3 feet underground in the form of root-like mycelia. This particular specimen is estimated to be at least 2,400 years old, but it may be as old as 8,000 or even 8,650 years old.
The Armillaria ostoyae is a pathogenic species of fungus in the family Physalacriaceae, and it grows and spreads primarily underground. It invades the sapwood of trees and disseminates over large distances under the bark or between trees in the form of black rhizomorphs or "shoestrings". In the autumn, the subterranean parts of the organism bloom "honey mushrooms" as surface fruit. This particular species of mushroom can be distinguished by its cream-brown colours, prominent cap scales, and well-developed ring.
The debate about what constitutes an organism complicates the question of which is the world's largest. For example, some people consider bee colonies to be a single organism, so a genetically identical colony of fungi, such as the Armillaria ostoyae, could also be considered one. However, some argue that each individual cap of the mushroom could survive on its own, so it is not truly a single organism.
Other contenders for the world's largest living organism include clonal colonies of aspen trees, such as Pando in the Fishlake National Forest in Utah, which is considered the world's most massive plant. This clonal forest, comprised of around 47,000 individual stems, was confirmed to be a single root system, covering 43 hectares or 106 acres, and weighing an estimated 6,000 tonnes. Aspen groves on Colorado's Kebler Pass may also be even larger, but they have not been fully studied yet.
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Weighing 35,000 tons
The honey mushroom is a single fungal organism that has survived for 10,000 years on the very trees it lives beneath. It is mostly underground, and only pops up when it reproduces. The mushroom cap, which is the part that most people are familiar with, is only one specific part of the fungus, and in most species, it is the only part that appears above ground.
The honey mushroom is a pathogenic species of fungus in the family Physalacriaceae. It has gills and a well-developed ring on the stipe. The mycelium invades the sapwood of trees, and can disseminate over great distances under the bark or between trees in the form of black rhizomorphs, also known as "shoestrings".
The honey mushroom derives its name from the amber-coloured fruit that emerges in the fall. It is both present in the interior of the forest and along the coast. A mushroom of this type in the Malheur National Forest in the Strawberry Mountains of eastern Oregon was found to be the largest fungal colony in the world, spanning an area of 3.5 square miles (2,200 acres; 9.1 square kilometres). This organism is estimated to be some 8,000 years old and may weigh as much as 35,000 tons.
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Covering 3.5 square miles
The largest mushroom in the world is not your typical mushroom. It is a single fungal organism, also known as a honey mushroom, and it covers an area of 3.5 square miles (or 9 square kilometres). This giant mushroom, known scientifically as Armillaria ostoyae or Armillaria solidipes, was discovered in Oregon's Malheur National Forest in 1998. It is believed to be between 2,000 and 8,000 years old and may weigh as much as 35,000 tons.
The honey mushroom got so big because it can survive by digesting living tree roots. It spreads along tree roots in the form of black fibres, which have earned it the nickname "shoestring fungus". The honey mushroom is a parasite, sucking the life out of trees. It grows under the bark of trees, and only emerges above ground when it is time to reproduce. It is only during this brief period in autumn that the classic mushroom shape with a cap, gills and spores is visible. For the rest of the year, it is just a thin, white layer under the bark.
The Armillaria ostoyae is mostly found in the cooler regions of the northern hemisphere, in forests in North America and parts of Asia. It is distinguishable from other Armillaria species by its cream-brown colours, prominent cap scales, and a well-developed ring. The subterranean parts of the organism bloom honey mushrooms as surface fruits in autumn. Low competition for land and nutrients allows this fungus to grow to huge proportions.
The discovery of the honey mushroom in Oregon sparked a debate about what constitutes an individual organism. Each individual cap is genetically identical to all the others, and they will merge together when placed next to each other. This interconnected, genetically identical colony of fungi is considered a single organism by most scientists.
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8,000 years old
The largest mushroom ever found is a specimen of Armillaria ostoyae (synonym A. solidipes) in the Malheur National Forest in the Strawberry Mountains of eastern Oregon. It is also known as the "Humongous Fungus" and is considered the largest fungal colony in the world. It spans an area of 3.5 square miles (2,200 acres; 9.1 km2) and weighs an estimated 35,000 tons. This organism is thought to be around 8,000 years old, making it one of the oldest known organisms on Earth.
Armillaria ostoyae is a pathogenic species of fungus in the family Physalacriaceae. It has decurrent gills, and the stipe has a ring. This fungus invades the sapwood of trees and disseminates over long distances under the bark or between trees in the form of black rhizomorphs, also known as "shoestrings". The species grows and spreads primarily underground, and only during the autumn do the subterranean parts of the organism bloom into the "honey mushrooms" that we typically associate with mushrooms.
The enormous size of this fungus can be attributed to the low competition for land and nutrients in the area, allowing it to grow unchecked. It is often referred to as the "Honey Mushroom" or "Shoestring Fungus" due to its golden colour and the string-like threads it deploys to wrap around tree roots and infiltrate under tree bark. This colour is also what gives the surface-level mushrooms their name, as they sprout from infected tree trunks in the fall.
The Armillaria ostoyae colony in Oregon is so expansive that it is considered a single organism. It is one of the largest known organisms in the world by area, only rivalled by a colony of Posidonia australis on the Australian seabed, which measures 200 square kilometres (77 sq mi; 49,000 acres). The Oregon fungus is also comparable to the aspen grove "Pando" in terms of living biomass. The age of this fungus was determined by its spread rate, which is estimated at one to three feet per year.
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Frequently asked questions
The biggest mushroom ever discovered is the Armillaria ostoyae, also known as the honey mushroom. It covers 3.5 square miles (9.1 km^2) or 2,200 acres.
The Armillaria ostoyae was found in the Malheur National Forest in Oregon's Strawberry Mountains.
The Armillaria ostoyae is estimated to be around 8,000 years old, though some estimates place it at 2,400 years old or even 8,650 years old.
The Armillaria ostoyae is estimated to weigh between 7,500 and 35,000 tons, which is the weight of more than 200 gray whales.
The second-largest living organism on Earth is a colony of Posidonia australis, a seagrass in Australia's Shark Bay, which covers 180 square kilometers.
