Of all the things out there, you wouldn't expect a mushroom to be making headlines, but a new found species of the fungus has put the spotlight right on it.?
While it is known that mushroom has varied species found across the world, but did you know there is something called a glowing mushroom? Yes, they are a thing and were discovered by scientists in Northeast India.
The discovery came about last year when a?team of researchers from India and China embarked?on a fungal foray in Assam.?Over the course of two weeks?of fieldwork in the Assam region, they spotted several new species of mushrooms.?
After hearing reports from locals of ¡°electric mushrooms¡±, they headed to West Jaintia Hills District in Meghalaya. after being guided by the locals to?bamboo forest, which is part of a community forest, and asked them to switch off their torches.
A minute later, the group was left astonished by what they saw: in the midst of the darkness an eerie green glow emerged from dead bamboo sticks that were smothered in tiny mushrooms.
The locals describe the species as ¡°electric mushrooms¡± that lives on dead bamboo. The species, christened?Roridomyces phyllostachydis?is?bioluminescent?¡ª it produces its own light.
The species may be new to science, but locals have known about (and used) it for quite a while now. The mushrooms are so bright that the locals have been employing bamboo sticks with these glowing mushrooms growing on them as natural torches at night.?
Well, who knew mushrooms could glow? Not me, at least.?
If this sounds weird, here are some of the other facts about mushrooms that are equally puzzling:
When you encounter a mushroom on the forest floor, know that, it's not just a mushroom. Yes, rather mushrooms are merely?the fruit of a predominantly underground organism. The majority of the organism is underground in the form of mycelium ¨C the vegetative part of a fungus that consists of a mass of branching single-cell strands called hyphae. The mushroom itself is the fruiting body of that fungus, which allows it to disperse spores and create more mushrooms.??
If you love fried chicken, you might well take a liking to this mushroom. There is an entire species of mushrooms, found all over the world, that?tastes like fried chicken. It's even referred to as the "chicken of the woods."?
Also read:?Oregon Becomes First US State To Decriminalize Mushrooms & Hard Drugs Like Cocaine And Heroin
It is most commonly found in eastern North America and is bright orange. It sort of look like a tasty piece of fried buffalo chicken.??
There is a 2400-year-old giant ¡°honey mushroom¡± in US' Oregon, covering 2200 acres, slowly killing off the trees in the forest. It is the largest living organism on the planet.?
According to ABC News, the outline of the giant fungus, stretches 3.5 miles across, and extends an average of three feet into the ground. It covers an area as big as 1,665football fields.?
Researchers?theorize that "tripping" is?actually experiencing a hyperconnected brain. When you take mushrooms with psilocybin, the active ingredient in the drug seems to completely disrupt the normal communication networks in the brain, by connecting "brain regions that don't normally talk together
It is shown to be a great way to change perspective, aid in alleviating depression, and dealing with PTSD.
There are a few species of mushroom that retail for thousands of dollars per pound. One of those mushrooms is the matsutake. The matsutake is an exceedingly rare Japanese mushroom that yields?less than a thousand tons.
Another, the?Alba White mushroom, is a truffle that only grows from September to January in Italy.
Also read:?Mysterious New Mushroom Species Glow Like The Northern Lights In Meghalaya Forests