by Gemma Reguera — Although I was a tomboy as a child, I never had the stomach for spitting competitions. But that changed recently when I read an article by Nik Money and collaborators about spitting competitions among fungi. Yes, you heard me right. Some fungi spit, and they do so with amazing…
by Elio — If you were a fungus growing on dung and if, for propagation, you depended on having your spores ingested by an animal, you'd have a problem. Few animals graze near their poop. The solution would be to evolve a powerful discharge mechanism that ensured that your spores traveled far afield.
by Elio — In 1884, W. B. Grove, Honorary Librarian of the Birmingham Natural History and Microscopical Society, wrote these golden words on Pilobolus, a small dung-inhabiting fungus. Why the name was later appropriated by a famed dance group is shrouded in mystery.
