Thursday, April 21, 2011

Pilobolus dancing

Pilobolus is a beautiful and strange fungus able to throw its black sporangium several meters away with a speed of up to 25 m/s




But if you do a Google search you won't find the Zygomycote Pilobolus but an American dance troupe named after the fungus . . .

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Geomyces destructans killing bats?

Geomyces destructans may be a "new" bat-pathogen in the US:

"Wildlife biologists and land managers are alarmed by what many are saying is the most serious threat facing bat populations in human history: Tens of thousands of bats are dying in hibernacula in the northeastern United States and no one knows why. The mysterious affliction, reported from New Hampshire to Tennessee, is dubbed “white-nose syndrome” because many affected bats develop prominent halos of white fungus surrounding their faces. White-nose syndrome (WNS) was first reported during the winter of 2006-2007 in a few hibernation caves near Albany, New York, where more than 8,000 bats died" (read more here).

The fungus, Geomyces destructans, is an ananmorph of Pseudogymnoascus which belongs somewhere in the Dothideomycetes.

Danish bat – no desease (?)

Monday, April 18, 2011

Ascobolus sacchariferus

Small apothecia on dung from Roe Deer. Spores striate, about 17 x 10 µm. Nice little guy!


Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Spring-fungus: Pezicula rostrupii

We just identified a "missing fungus": Pezicula rostrupii growing on dead Fraxinus near the type locality: