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Mycelium is an important food source for many soil invertebrates. They are vital to agriculture and are important to almost all species of plants, many species co-evolving with the fungi. Mycelium is a primary factor in some plants' health, nutrient intake and growth, with mycelium being a major factor to plant fitness.
In nematode-trapping fungi, hyphae may be modified into trapping structures such as constricting rings and adhesive nets. Mycelial cords can be formed to transfer nutrients over larger distances. Bulk fungal tissues, cords, and membranes, such as those of mushrooms and lichens , are mainly composed of felted and often anastomosed hyphae.
The English word fungus is directly adopted from the Latin fungus (mushroom), used in the writings of Horace and Pliny. [10] This in turn is derived from the Greek word sphongos (σφόγγος 'sponge'), which refers to the macroscopic structures and morphology of mushrooms and molds; [11] the root is also used in other languages, such as the German Schwamm ('sponge') and Schimmel ('mold').
White threads of fungal mycelium are sometimes visible underneath leaf litter in a forest floor. A mycorrhizal network (also known as a common mycorrhizal network or CMN) is an underground network found in forests and other plant communities, created by the hyphae of mycorrhizal fungi joining with plant roots. This network connects individual ...
A mycorrhiza is a symbiotic association between a green plant and a fungus. The plant makes organic molecules by photosynthesis and supplies them to the fungus in the form of sugars or lipids, while the fungus supplies the plant with water and mineral nutrients, such as phosphorus, taken from the soil.
Mycology is the branch of biology concerned with the study of fungi, including their taxonomy, genetics, biochemical properties, and use by humans. [1] Fungi can be a source of tinder, food, traditional medicine, as well as entheogens, poison, and infection.
Fungi that possess these structures can compete and grow in harsh conditions. [ 7 ] Rhizomorphs are sometimes called mycelial cords, although they are structurally different: mycelial cords are less complex and have a loose network of hyphae giving an appearance of a fan-like mat, [ 6 ] while rhizomorphs are more complex organs that have ...
The network of hyphae (the mycelium) is fundamental to fungal nutrition. Look up saprotroph in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Saprotrophic nutrition / s æ p r ə ˈ t r ɒ f ɪ k , - p r oʊ -/ [ 1 ] or lysotrophic nutrition [ 2 ] [ 3 ] is a process of chemoheterotrophic extracellular digestion involved in the processing of decayed (dead or ...