3 Multicellular Fungi Examples: Detailed Facts

Fungi is a eukaryotic microorganism, multicellular fungi examples are the type of fungi that have multiple hyphae in it.

Here is the exclusive list of Multicellular Fungi Examples

Mushrooms:

Mushrooms are one such group of micro-organism to be more precise, a fungi that is taken as a food in many many countries including India. It is still confusing to many that it should be fallen under a plant food or an animal food or a separate category.

The structure or the morphology of the mushroom is simple and aesthetic as most of the mushrooms appear as if it is a miniature tree that holds a thick umbrella. So technically the mushrooms are multicellular organisms that have a cap-like structure on top.

The stalk of the mushroom is held in the soil whereas the attachment between the cap and the stalk is the gills that are very spongy and in a strip-like structure that hold or adhere the cap and stalk.

Then, the mushroom has the hyphae or branched mycelium that is the major part in the nutrient uptake process.

Examples of mushrooms include White Button Mushroom- Champignon (de Paris), Crimini Mushroom- Italian brown, brown mushrooms, Portobello Mushroom – open cap mushroom, Shiitake Mushroom- black mushroom, oriental black, forest mushroom.

Also include Maitake Mushroom, Oyster Mushroom, Enoki Mushroom, Beech Mushroom, King Trumpet Mushroom, Black Trumpet Mushroom

Molds:

Moulds are a type of fungi that can dwell on both plants as well as animals. It can also be seen in the environment in which we live.

The common molds that are seen frequently include aspergillus, stachybotrys atra, cladosporium , Rhizopus. We all would have noticed greenish black patches or dots on the slice of bread. (Please refer the image below)

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Molds
Image Credits- Wikimedia

It is because the bread gets puffed up by the yeast that is added by the baker, later on after a few days the shelf life of the bread decreases, causing the bread to spoil or rot.

Molds easily get in the bread and start to utilize and digest the matter in the bread for their survival.

This is why molds are naturally seen everywhere. Molds are multicellular microscopic organisms with multiple filaments and hyphae that are highly branched.

Neurospora:

Neurospora which is also called the nerve spore is similar to that of axons on the spore. They fall under the ascomycete fungi.

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Neurospora crassahyphae
Image Credits- Wikimedia

Few of the neurospora are multicellular fungi that have around 26+ structurally distinct cell types. In comparison to conidia, neurospora is more resistant to stress.

Basidiomycetes:

Basidiomycetes are large  variety phylum in fungi that includes not only mushrooms but also shelf fungi, puffballs, and stinkhorns.

Calvatia gigantea, which is also know called the snowball fungus or the giant puffball, is a good example of multicellular fungi that appearance like a snow ball on the soil.

What is a multicellular fungus?

Fungi are eukaryotic organisms which can do damage and also helpful to other organisms like plants, animals etc.

Multicellular fungi are the fungi that have multiple cells or to be more clear they have more hyphae in them that are branched. Multicellular fungi multiple and proliferate by producing spores.

Multicellular fungi examples characteristics:

  • Multicellular Fungi are eukaryotic organisms which are non-motile and they can not produce their food by themselves.
  • Multicellular fungi are filamentous which produces more hyphae and they are highly branched.
  • Multicellular fungi multiply by producing spores.
  • Multicellular Fungi do not have chlorophyll in them and that is the reason that they cannot perform the complex mechanism of photosynthesis, which will aid in the synthesis of nutrition.
  • Fungi store their nutritive food (energy molecule) in the form of starch.
  • Bio production of chitin particles occurs in fungi.
  • The nuclei of the fungi are very minute.
  • The fungi do not have an embryonic stage. Fungi develop and multiply by the process of spores formation that is formed when maturation.
  • few multicellular fungi can be issue causing and can invade the host and cause discomfort
  • Examples include mushrooms, molds

Explain on the multicellular fungi structure:

Multicellular fungi, from the word we can assume that the fungi with multiple numbers of cells present inside their structural body.

Multicellular fungi possess lots of tubular structures called the filaments or the hyphae that are bunched together and called the mycelia or mycelium.

They have 2 distinctive structural stages called the vegetative and the multiplication stage. due to such complex mechanisms happening, it is grouped under multicellular organisms.

Summary:

The article multicellular fungi examples briefly explains all the insights about structure of a multicellular fungi– the presence of filament- tubular structures, mycelia (mycelium), Hyphae and the multicellular fungi examples such as mushrooms, molds, neurospora and the phylum Basidiomycetes; Their features and appearance in the environment.

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