John Miller
Mushrooms are the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting bodies of fungi, typically produced above ground on soil or another food source. They are formed within the mycelium, the mass of thread-like hyphae that make up the fungus. The term mushroom is used to describe the fleshy fruiting bodies of some Ascomycota and is also used for polypores, puffballs, jelly fungi, coral fungi, bracket fungi, stinkhorns, and cup fungi. Fungi are eukaryotic organisms with membrane-bound organelles and clearly defined nuclei. They are distinct from plants as they lack chlorophyll and have unique structural and physiological features.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| What is a mushroom? | The fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus |
| How does it grow? | Mushrooms grow from a nodule or pinhead called a primordium, which is typically found on or near the surface of the substrate |
| What is its structure? | Most mushrooms have a stem (stipe), a cap (pileus), and gills (lamellae) on the underside of the cap. Some have pores or spines instead of gills. |
| What are its spores like? | Microscopic spores are produced on the gills and fall in a fine rain of powder from under the caps. |
| What is it made of? | Raw brown mushrooms are 92% water, 4% carbohydrates, 2% protein and less than 1% fat. |
| Is it a fungus or a plant? | Mushrooms are a type of fungus, not a plant. They are more closely related to animals than plants. |
| Are all mushrooms the same? | No, there are approximately 14,000 species of mushrooms. |
| Are all mushrooms safe to eat? | No, some mushrooms are poisonous and can be deadly. |
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What You'll Learn
Mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of fungi
Fungi are more closely related to humans and other animals than they are to plants. Genetic analysis has revealed that fungi share a more recent common ancestor with humans than they do with plants. In fact, fungi are more closely related to animals than plants. This is due to the presence of cell walls in fungi, which are made out of chitin, the same substance that makes bugs crunchy. Fungi also lack the ability to photosynthesize, as they do not have the necessary adaptations.
The early classification of fungi as plants can be attributed to limited tools and knowledge. Early taxonomists observed that fungi had rigid cell walls and were immobile, leading them to conclude that fungi were not animals and must therefore be plants. However, fungi are now recognized as a distinct branch of life, separate from both plants and animals.
The term "mushroom" is loosely used to describe a variety of gilled fungi, with or without stems. Some mushrooms, like the lobster mushroom, have an unusual shape and colour due to deformation by parasitic fungi. Other mushrooms lack gills and have pores, spines, or other unique characteristics. While the standard for the name "mushroom" is the cultivated white button mushroom, the term is commonly applied to various fungal fruiting bodies.
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Fungi are more closely related to animals than plants
Mushrooms are a type of fungus. Fungi have historically been grouped with plants, but this is inaccurate. In fact, fungi are more closely related to animals than they are to plants.
Early taxonomists observed that fungi were immobile and had rigid cell walls, and so they were classified as plants. However, modern science has revealed that this classification is incorrect. The best available molecular evidence demonstrates that fungi are more closely related to animals. These computational and molecular approaches provide robust evolutionary histories that indicate organismal relationships and estimate when they diverged from common ancestors.
Fungi are heterotrophic, like animals, meaning they are unable to produce their own food. In contrast, plants are autotrophic, meaning they can produce their own food through photosynthesis. Fungi chemically digest their food, which is another characteristic they share with animals.
The last common ancestor of plants, fungi, and animals split into the common ancestor of all plants and the common ancestor of all animals and fungi. Then, the common ancestor of animals and fungi split. In other words, fungi and animals share a more recent common ancestor than either group does with plants. Scientists have estimated that fungi split from animals around 1.538 billion years ago, whereas plants split from animals about 1.547 billion years ago. This means that fungi are more closely related to animals than to plants.
Fungi include mushrooms, molds, and yeasts. They can be distinguished by their cellular components, such as membrane-bound organelles, and the composition of their cell membranes.
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Fungi include yeasts, moulds, smuts, and rusts
Mushrooms are a type of fungus. Fungi were historically grouped with plants, but they are distinct in several ways. For example, fungi lack chlorophyll and are more closely related to animals than plants.
Smuts are fungi that produce large numbers of teliospores, which are dark, thick-walled, and dust-like. They are mostly Ustilaginomycetes and are known for causing plant diseases, particularly in cereal and crop pathogens. Rusts, on the other hand, are a type of fungus that produces coloured spores and typically affects plants. They get their name from the rusty colour of the spores produced. Rusts can cause significant damage to crops and are known to infect a wide range of plants, including firs and huckleberries.
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Mushrooms produce spores, not seeds
Mushrooms are the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting bodies of a fungus. They develop from a nodule or pinhead called a primordium, which is typically found on or near the surface of the substrate. The primordium is formed within the mycelium, which is the mass of thread-like hyphae that make up the fungus.
Additionally, most plant seeds are visible to the human eye, while mushroom spores are tiny dust-like particles that can only be seen under a microscope. However, when thousands of spores come together, their colour can be seen with the naked eye, aiding in mushroom identification. Mushroom spores can remain dormant until environmental conditions are suitable for germination. When a spore lands in a moist place, it produces a thread-like hypha that finds and fuses with a different type of mating hypha to form new mycelium.
Mushrooms typically release spores from their gills, which are found on the underside of the cap. These gills produce microscopic spores that help the fungus spread across the ground or its occupant surface. The spores fall in a fine rain of powder from under the caps and are carried by wind currents. When the spores land in a moist environment, they germinate and release chemicals that dissolve the food, allowing the growing fungus to absorb the nutrients.
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Mushrooms are neither plants nor animals
Fungi have historically been grouped with plants, but this classification is inaccurate. While mushrooms are similar to plants in some ways, they lack chlorophyll and have to take nutrients from other materials. They do not have rigid cell walls and do not produce sugars from sunlight and air through photosynthesis. Instead, fungi have cell walls made of chitin, the substance that makes insects' exoskeletons hard and crunchy.
Fungi are, in fact, more closely related to animals than to plants, according to genetic analysis. Humans share a more recent common ancestor with all fungi than we do with plants. This means that we are more closely related to mushrooms than we are to plants. However, fungi have evolved independently into large multicellular organisms, resulting in unique traits and features.
Fungi include a diverse range of organisms, such as yeasts, molds, smuts, and rusts, in addition to the familiar mushroom-forming species. Some fungi are edible and nutritious, like the common white button mushroom, while others are poisonous or unpalatable. Yeasts, for example, are used in bread-making and brewing, while certain fungi are used to create antibiotics and other drugs.
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Frequently asked questions
A mushroom is the fleshy, spore-bearing fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground on soil or another food source.
A mushroom is a fungus. Fungi are more closely related to animals than plants. They have their own kingdom: the Fungi.
Most organisms, including plants, can construct a structure known as "cell walls" to make their tissue more sturdy. Fungi, however, make their cell walls out of chitin, the same substance that makes bugs crunchy. Another difference is that plants produce sugars from sunlight and air using photosynthesis, whereas fungi and animals lack the adaptations needed to do this.
No. Delineation between edible and poisonous fungi is not clear-cut. Some mushrooms develop a poison that can kill people who eat them, but others are famously delicious and nutritious.
Yeast is a fungus that is present in many kinds of bread and beer. Blue cheeses are made using a specific fungus to give them their tangy flavor.
