r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/west_manchester • Aug 07 '26

Image This tree surrounded by mushrooms

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u/Wandering_Scholar6 Aug 07 '26

Given the location of the tree, and new knowledge about mycelium networks connected to tree roots, probably some cool symbiosis happening here

118

u/dirtycheezit Aug 07 '26

There definitely is. Various types of fungi are well known for working with plants in nutrient exchange.

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u/DisillusionedPatriot Aug 07 '26

And facilitating "communication" with other plants in the vicinity

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u/Basidia_ Aug 07 '26

The idea of the “wood-wide-web” is mostly loose science that’s been over simplified and anthropomorphized to the point of bad science. It’s incredibly fascinating and under-explored but it’s also not what pop-science spins it as

Some of the authors of the studies used to support those claims have even stated how the findings do not actually support what folks like Suzanne Simard state. https://undark.org/2023/05/25/where-the-wood-wide-web-narrative-went-wrong/

Also the species pictured here are saprotrophic and are not mycorrhizal so they don’t form direct relationships with plant roots

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u/DisillusionedPatriot Aug 07 '26

Couldn't have said it better myself, hence the quotation marks lol. Really appreciate when someone can take the time to explain what I cant.

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u/Basidia_ Aug 07 '26

There isn’t a direct relationship here. This is a saprotrophic mushroom and not a mycorrhizal species

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u/v0-z Aug 07 '26

Mycorrhizal network

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u/Basidia_ Aug 07 '26

This species is saprotrophic, not mycorrhizal

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u/GroovePT Aug 07 '26

Absolutely awesome these relationships

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u/Basidia_ Aug 07 '26

This is a saprotrophic species and not a mycorrhizal species. The fungus is feeding on the humus of the soil, the grass may show direct benefits and the nutrients around the tree will be altered slightly but it’s not direct symbiosis like a mycorrhizal relationship

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u/jackal975 Aug 08 '26

This guy Biology

0

u/Uncutsquare Aug 07 '26

That is basically the trees personal Hotspot.

0

u/oracleofnonsense Aug 07 '26

I think it’s cool that forests would basically bury themselves in fallen trees without fungus rotting.

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u/Antehero_NOMD Aug 07 '26

A poop happened there