Could mycorrhizal fungi actually be part of plant "cognition"? While this isn't a classic animal cognitive process, there are some interesting parallels. I really enjoy this perspective, and it makes sense. What do you think? link.springer.com/article/10.1...

An interesting study from Japan observes how animal-dispersed truffle-like fungi are more prone to genetic isolation due to forest fragmentation. Not a surprising finding, but interesting to consider from a conservation standpoint! link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Article I wrote for Rewilding Magazine, also featuring some of my photography. Check it out. www.rewildingmag.com/why-rewilder...

Why rewilders shouldn’t forget about fungi

These mostly hidden life forms have a big role to play in rewilding – and need its support, too.

rewildingmag.com

I found a cool cordyceps on a stink bug the other day! Pretty rad! What do you think?

Some folks have reached out about the photos I've taken of ectomycorrhizal root tips. I wrote a short article about this for my brand-new Substack. If this sort of long-form content interests you, please subscribe and let me know if you want to see more! timomendez.substack.com/p/photograph...

Photographing Ectomycorrhizal Root Tips

Yep! Geeking out!

timomendez.substack.com

A recent article I wrote for the JSTOR Daily about mycorrhizal fungi and the carbon cycle. Features my photos as well. Check it out. daily.jstor.org/the-fungi-in...

The Fungi in the Carbon Jigsaw - JSTOR Daily

Out of sight, below the soil’s surface, fungi play a vital role in the existence and health of our forests, woodlands, jungles, and prairies.

daily.jstor.org

Ergothioneine is a unique antioxidant with many promising health benefits, including for cognitive health. As this study shows, arbuscular mycorrhizal is crucial in the uptake of this compound by plants, as it is almost exclusively produced by fungi. nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....

Linking soil health to human health: Arbuscular mycorrhizae play a key role in plant uptake of the antioxidant ergothioneine from soils

Evidence has emerged that the antioxidant ergothioneine may be important in preventing many inflammatory diseases in humans. However, ergothioneine is not produced by humans or plants and is only mad....

nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Very excited to see this work out by visiting PhD in my group Yuanhao Zhang exploring interactions between clonal plant integration and CMNs! Spoiler they interact in big ways! doi.org/10.1111/ppl....

Capacity to form common mycorrhizal networks reduces the positive impact of clonal integration between plants

Both clonal plant capabilities for physiological integration and common mycorrhizal networks (CMNs) formed by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can influence the distribution of nutrients and growth...

doi.org

Ectomycorrhizal structures are produced by an incredible diversity of fungi. In this new study, researchers documented a fusarium forming EM structures and improving plant health. imafungus.pensoft.net/article/1432...

Looking forward to reading this amazing research by brilliant scientists. Check it out.

Society for the Protection of Underground Networks (SPUN)@spun.earth · last yr.

Our newest research on plant-fungal trade published today in @nature.com. The work, led by scientists from Vrije Universiteit, Princeton University, SPUN & AMOLF combines robotics, mycology & biophysics to reveal underground supply-chain dynamics. Open access: www.nature.com/articles/s41...

And I though Lycoperdon perlartum (Common puffball) was saprobic. This study shows it forms ECM relationships with populus and may improve their resistance to drought. link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Lycoperdon perlatum from a coniferous forest forms an ectomycorrhizal relation with and increases drought resistance of Populus × canadensis ‘Zhongliao 1’ - Symbiosis

Plant–fungal symbiotic associations benefit initial plant adaptation to droughty terrestrial ecosystems. Although information on mycorrhizal and endophytic fungi in drought-resistant mechanisms in cro...

link.springer.com

The first description of mycorrhizae was published in 1885, where A.B. Frank first coined the term. His study, commissioned by the Kingdom of Prussia, explored the potential for truffle cultivation. Despite it's age, it's insightful to anyone interested in the subject. Read it ⬇️ tinyurl.com/ABFrank

An undescribed purple Cantharellus sp. from Tepoztlan, Morelos. Beautiful species, most likely forming mycorrhizal associations with Oak.

A wasp infected by Ophiocordyceps humbertii I photographed last summer in the Sierra Sur of Oaxaca.

I've been looking for EM root tips to photograph with minimal experience in the field. While this study focuses on Himalayan fir, their description of morphotypes is insightful regarding the grand anatomical diversity of these brilliant structures. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Lactarius indigo is a delicious ectomycorrhizal species found with Oak and Pine in Mexico, Central America, and the eastern United States. There are numerous varieties, which may be broken up into several different species soon. I took this picture near my home in Morelos, Mexico last season.

Interesting study by Chinese researchers shows that ECM trees in tropical forests sequester more carbon in N-rich soils, while AM tree diversity rises in P-rich soils but stores less carbon. This may be due to lower AM fungal abundance, making AM trees more prone to pathogens. tinyurl.com/4xzhajus

Mycorrhizal and nutrient controls of carbon sequestration in tropical rainforest soil

Tree mycorrhizal associations have substantial consequences for soil organic carbon (SOC), but it remains unclear how nutrient availability will regul…

sciencedirect.com

This new study outlines how canopy trees & understory shrubs can host the same species of ectomycorrhizal fungi. It finds that oaks & pines form overlapping ECM assemblages with Hazel when growing in proximity.

Justin Stewart@thecrobe.bsky.social · 2y ago

High overlap in the richness and composition of ectomycorrhizal fungal communities associated with Corylus shrubs and co-occurring Quercus and Pinus trees www.tandfonline.com/eprint/ZRWHX...

The common idea that plants "warn" each other of threats through mycorrhizal networks might not be correct, according to this fascinating research. Instead, fungi may act like whistleblowers, detecting plant stress and signaling others in their network to prepare their defenses.

Toby Kiers@tobykiers.bsky.social · 2y ago

Are plants more likely to be ‘eavesdroppers’ than altruists when tapped into fungal networks? Read our new theory paper out today in @pnas.org w/ @stuwest.bsky.social @tomwscott.bsky.social www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... (photo T. Munita)

Before their extinction 600 years ago, the giant flightless Moa ate and dispersed truffles. This was likely true for many of the 41% of bird species now extinct in New Zealand. What is the best way to approach species conservation when the mutualist dispersers are now extinct? tinyurl.com/yeznr8ez

DNA and spores from coprolites reveal that colourful truffle-like fungi endemic to New Zealand were consumed by extinct moa (Dinornithiformes) | Biology Letters

Mycovores (animals that consume fungi) are important for fungal spore dispersal, including ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungi symbiotic with forest-forming trees. As such, fungi and their symbionts may be impacted by mycovore extinction. New Zealand (NZ) has a ...

tinyurl.com

Aureoboletus aff. betula from the Sierra Sur in Oaxaca, growing with Pine.

Laccaria are early successional ectomycorrhizal fungi, fundamental for the establishment of young trees in various parts of the world. They are also edible. This is Laccaria amythestina s.l. is from Tepoztlan, Morelos.

Some ectomycorrhizal root tips I recently had the pleasure of photographing. #mycorrhizal #emfungi #mycorrhizae

I photographed a tarantula infected by a cordyceps the other day. It was amazing and unexpected. Discovered by friends, inside a cave in complete darkness, near my home. It is likely a new species in the Cordyceps nidus complex.