The more I research, the more amazing mushrooms and fungi are. Fungi play an important role in the Earth’s material cycle by breaking down organic matter into inorganic matter. The world of mushrooms is apparently quite mysterious. Apparently, there are mushrooms with over 17,000 different genders. With that many genders, there is a 98% chance that adjacent mushrooms will be compatible in terms of gender. It’s a pretty powerful system for species continuation.
https://sputniknews.jp/20220422/17000-10691303.html
There is also information that mushrooms communicate using about 50 words by emitting electrical signals. I wonder what kind of conversations they have. Maybe something like “It’s humid here” or “Watch out for bugs!” Mushrooms are connected by mycelium, so it may be that communicating with each other is advantageous for their overall survival.
https://www.tryeting.jp/column/6618
I think that autonomous, decentralized life forms that make decisions individually to benefit the whole, such as mushrooms, bees, and ants, are truly amazing, but slime molds in particular are amazing. Even though they are a collection of many fungi, they move as if they have a single intelligence or mind. When a reduced map of the Kanto region’s urban areas was prepared and food was placed at the location of each city, a rational network was formed, just like a railway route map.
https://www.rikelab.jp/post/3252.html
I think each fungus communicates information with the other fungi frequently, what an amazing life form. This kind of network of mycelium is formed underground in forests and other places, and apparently it involves tree roots, soil and stones. This network allows the trees to communicate with each other. It then connects to the oldest tree, known as the “mother tree,” and seems to maintain a balance in the entire forest, including carbon and water storage and the habitat of microorganisms. Perhaps long-lived trees are intelligent.
https://globe.asahi.com/article/15612682
This mycelium network can not only send information but also nutrients, so it acts as both a communication route and a supply route. Mushrooms are amazing, being connected underground without the naked eye and supporting the diverse symbiosis of the Earth. The Earth’s ecosystem is amazing.
