Thank You For Helping Me Reach 1k Boops :)

Thank you for helping me reach 1k boops :)

Ahww, no problem:)) Thank youu for helping me:)

Shaggy Inkcap - Coprinus comatus

These mushrooms are most commonly seen in grassland and other open habitats, it is also saprobic.¹ It is easy to recognize by its shaggy cap, when younger cylindrical and later on conical.

The shaggy inkcap's gills are free from the stem and release black spores.² Around the stipe it has got a ring (or as I call it: a skirt).

The pictures were taken sometime last fall, so like November 2023.

This is a spore print that I made. It can be a bit messy because the ink gets on your hands. However, it dries up like mud and you can just wipe it up, at least in my experience.

Sources used in the top paragraph (these might also be useful for if you wish to do your own research):

¹.

².

I woke up this morning and I found the most amazing thing! In the pot of my bear's paw succulent or cotyledon tomentosa I found this small mushroom.

It's about 2 cm tall and the cap is 0,8 cm broad. The gills are white/cream coloured. Unfortunately, I could not tell what the attachment of the gills was.

In the the somewhat blurry pictures below, it seems that this small mushroom has white mycelium.

I have not been able to identify the species, I will have to put some more time into researching that:)

What I have noticed is that anytime I pick up the pot with the cotyledon tomentosa and the tiny fungus, I can immediately smell the mushroom. I do not know if that makes sense, but is has a very strong fungi smell, so much so, I can nearly taste it.

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Hiyaa! I haven't posted in forever, I've been really busy. So sorry about that! I do hope you guys enjoy this cute little fungus:)

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What is your favorite fungus that has a symbiotic relationship with trees and why?

I think it has to be the amethyst deceiver or Laccaria amethystina. A species which forms symbiotic associations with all kinds of trees, but most often with birch and oak trees.¹

There are so many reasons why I love this fungus, so many.

First of all, it is absolutely gorgeous. I remember seeing this species for the first time as a kid when visiting the forest and just being in pure awe because of how beautiful it was. I have been fascinated with this mushroom ever since. Besides sentimental and aesthetic reasons, I have other motives as to why I love this fungus so much.

I like how this fungus itself is edible, but when growing in arsenic rich soils can absorb the arsenic and become toxic. I would just love to research how the absorption of arsenic affects the fungus in different stages. Maybe I have not been looking thoroughly enough, but I have not been able to find anything about it. I find its ability to become toxic by absorbing arsenic from the soil really fascinating.

Another reason I love the amethyst deceiver so much is because of the genus it is in. Laccaria is so amazing! Another Laccaria species, Laccaria laccata which also forms symbiotic relationships with trees, is really awesome. Recently while researching this species, I came across an article written in the early 80's that for some reason I had not run across before. It wrote about the relationship of L. laccata with the douglas-fir, specifically with douglas-fir seedlings. L. laccata is extremely effective in suppressing diseases and promoting growth in the seedlings.² It is probably so effective because it has mycorrhization helper bacteria or MHB.³

But seriously, I do not know how I had not run across this research before, because there is a lot of it. If it interest you I would really recommend researching it because it is so interesting!

This Laccaria laccata btw:

To me the amethyst deceiver just has so many interesting properties which I would love to research myself, this is probably the main reason why I love this species so much. I would love an opportunity to look at this species under a microscope and just learn everything about it! I want to research if the amethyst deceiver is also very effective in preventing diseases or stimulating growth, maybe it has other awesome properties. I just want to know more about it!

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I hope this properly answers your question, if you have any more questions let me know:)) It was tough choice btw, because I have like 500 favourite species of fungi lol.

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Image sources:

Wild Food UK

Amethyst Deceiver

Very common and beautifully coloured, although the colour can be deceptive in photographs.

ePHOTOzine

Amethyst deceiver family by gill_f

Photograph posted by gill_f with the description: A group of Amethyst Deceiver fungi in our local woodland. Not been on EPZ for a while but

Text sources:

1.

2.

OUP Academic

Disease Suppression and Growth Promotion in Douglas-fir Seedlings by the Ectomycorrhizal Fungus Laccaria laccata

Abstract. In pot tests, primary roots of Douglas-fir seedlings germinating in soil were inoculated by soil injection with suspensions of Lac

3.

ResearchGate

(PDF) Mycorrhization helper bacteria associated with the Douglas fir-Laccaria laccata symbiosis: effects in aseptic and in glasshouse condit

PDF | A range of bacterial isolates from Laccaria laccata mycorrhizas and sporocarps were tested for their effect on ectomycorrhizal develop

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Sometimes I translate random stuff...

Харуки мураками - охота на овец

Бах, прикуривая от массивной зажигалки. - Прекрасно тебя понимаю. Разрушить горы, построить дома; останками гор засыпать море - и опятв  понастроить дома... Некоторые идиоты до сих пор считают это прекрасной идеей.

Haruki Murakami - A Wild Sheep Chase

Bach, lighting a cigarette from a massive lighter. - I understand you perfectly. Destroy mountains, build houses; to fill the sea with the remains of mountains - and again build houses ... Some idiots still consider this a great idea.

This is a random paragraph of a random page of a Russian translation of Haruki Murakami's 'A Wild Sheep Chase' (in Japanese: 羊をめぐる冒険).

I probably made some mistakes with translating it.

Could you tell me about candida aureus and alternaria solani? My friend studies them and they look so interesting

Hiii, I am so sorry for reacting so late, I have just been really busy with exams and stuff. Anyway, here is the post about Candida Aureus. I will also post about Alternaria solani, but at another time because I am still occupied with my exams.

This post will focus more on the fungus itself, rather than the effect it has on humans.

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Candida aureus

Candida auris is a type of fungus that grows a yeast and can cause candidiases in humans. It is most often contracted in hospitals by patients with a reduced immunity.¹ The fungus can enter the blood causing fungemia (the presence of yeast or fungi in the blood) and cause serious infections.² These infections affect the bloodstream, central nervous system and the internal organs.¹

C. auris has attracted attention because of its drug resistance. It was discovered in 2009 and has seemed to spread globally in the past 15 years.

Identification and microscopic features

C. auris was first described and identified in 2009 after being found in the ear canal of a 70-year-old Japanese woman at the Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital in Japan. It is a species of ascomycetous fungus of the genus Candida that grows as a yeast. It forms smooth, shiny, whitish-grey, viscous colonies on growth media.¹

Microscopically, cells are ellipsoid in shape.¹ The cells are approximately 2.5–5.0 micrometres in size and are arranged singly, in pairs or even in groups. C. auris does not form hyphae or pseudohyphae. Although, if it is grown under high-salt stress and depletion of heat-shock proteins, it can result in production of pseudohyphae like forms.³

Candida auris-fungus. Picture by Christopher Paul

Origins and emergence of the species

DNA analysis of four distinct but drug-resistant strains of Candida auris indicate an evolutionary divergence taking place at least 4,000 years ago. The common leap among the four strains into drug-resistance might be linked to to widespread azole-type antifungal use in agriculture. However, explanations for its emergence remain speculative.¹

Proposed scheme for the emergence of C. auris

Another possible explanation for its origins and spread is suggested to revolve around seawater. Molecular biologist Auke de Jong explains the correlation: ‘Because this fungus has a very high tolerance for salt, which is a substance many fungi cannot cope with. The sea could be a plausible route for the global spread of Candida auris; it may have been spread across the globe by the currents.’ ⁴

Vaccine development and treatment

As of June 2024 there is no human vaccine against Candida auris, however experiments involving the NDV-3A vaccine have successfully immunized mice against the fungus. This vaccine also improved the protective efficacy of the antifungal drug micafungin against C. auris infection in the mouse bloodstream.¹

Treatment can be complicated because of its multiple drug resistance and it easily being misidentified as various other Candida species.¹

Highly adaptable

Molecular biologist Auke de Jong also talks about how C. auris is a highly adaptable fungus. Besides its high tolerance for salt, it can also survive relatively high temperatures and commonly used disinfectants. The actions of mankind have accelerated the fungus’ adaptive capacity. Through the large-scale use of fungicides in agriculture, we have accelerated the adaptation process in this fungus. This contributes to the development of an fungus that is rapidly building an increasingly stronger resistance to the substances with which we fight it.⁴

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References

1.

en.wikipedia.org

Candida auris - Wikipedia

2.

3.

PubMed Central (PMC)

Candida auris: An emerging fungus that presents a serious global health threat

4.

Universiteit van Amsterdam

Drug-resistant fungus is on the rise worldwide

The Candida auris fungus is spreading across the globe at an ‘alarming’ speed. This species of fungus, which can cause fatal infections in r

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