Blog Post #5 Fungi FieldTrip
FUNGI FIELD TRIP
1. Discuss at least 2 organisms (fungi, plant, animal) that you saw on the fungi field trip. Tell us at least one thing you learned about that organism.
- I learned about mushrooms and how certain mushrooms could be deadly, and some in particular we can not grow ourselves. - I also learned about mycelial network, its the small white strands.
2. Did you learn something about fungi or plants that surprised you?
- What surprised me was that we were on billions of colonies and networks and how they all work together to help grow trees, mushrooms and etc.
3. Reflection: What was something that you observed on the fungi field trip? What was something you learned?
- I learned that fungi play a huge role in decomposing our environment. As we were walking back and forth we also talked about trees and their roots and we shouldn't step on their roots because it makes them weaker and could potentially harm and damage it.
4. Write at least 3 scientific questions based on your observation
- How long has mycelial networks been around?
- In what conditions can mycelial networks live in? Can they live in extreme conditions?
- How big can the mycelial network grow?
5. Write 1 hypothesis based on the questions above
The mycelial networks can live in extreme conditions.
It's cool you got a picture of the mycelial network, I missed that! I also wonder how big they can grow, and if that growth has a stopping point or if they are just limited by things in their environment like nutrients, water, etc...
ReplyDeleteIt blows my mind that you could harm something like a tree that's stood for hundreds of years by just stepping on its roots. I really like the question of how long the mycelial and mycorrhizal networks have been around, too. I wonder if the plants and fungi evolved together at the same time or if they happened to find each other at some point and remain inseparable.
ReplyDeleteMycelial networks can be massively extensive, for example there is a mycelial network in Oregon State that is 2.4 miles across in length, this makes it the largest living organism on earth (http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20141114-the-biggest-organism-in-the-world). I would imagine the relationship between plants and fungi formed early on, seeing how beneficial they are to one-another.
ReplyDelete