The Toxin That Helps Oyster Mushrooms Devour Worm Flesh
Published: 12:02 PM,Feb 11,2023 | EDITED : 04:02 PM,Feb 11,2023
The oyster mushroom is a mild thing, a pert, often creamy-colored whorl of fungus that goes well with thyme sauteed in butter. But among scientists who study mushrooms, it has earned a reputation for activities more sinister than you’d expect from a fungus found in fine dining. The oyster mushroom is a carnivore.
The mushroom’s usual diet of damp logs is low in nitrogen. To get that essential element, it feeds on microscopic nematodes, a type of worm. When a worm makes the mistake of passing over the fungus, the oyster mushroom paralyzes and kills it, devouring the animal’s nitrogen-rich flesh with rootlike tendrils called hyphae.
Outside the animal kingdom, Venus flytraps, pitcher plants and others are well known for their macabre meal-making. But fungi, too, have an appetite for flesh, and it’s not just the oyster mushroom, although it is the only carnivorous fungus you’ll generally find in your grocery store. Some fungi craft sticky nets laced with tempting scents to snare their prey. Others create deadly collars that constrict as the worm struggles, immobilizing the prey as the fungus’s hyphae penetrate its body. Some even release tiny sickle-shaped spores that, when swallowed by a nematode, wreak havoc from within.
The scenarios all end with the worm’s body invaded by the threads of its hungry captor. The oyster mushroom’s weapon of choice seems to be a toxin: Worms that touch the fungus are paralyzed, and their cells fall apart as they succumb to the hyphae. — NYT/VERONIQUE GREENWOOD
The mushroom’s usual diet of damp logs is low in nitrogen. To get that essential element, it feeds on microscopic nematodes, a type of worm. When a worm makes the mistake of passing over the fungus, the oyster mushroom paralyzes and kills it, devouring the animal’s nitrogen-rich flesh with rootlike tendrils called hyphae.
Outside the animal kingdom, Venus flytraps, pitcher plants and others are well known for their macabre meal-making. But fungi, too, have an appetite for flesh, and it’s not just the oyster mushroom, although it is the only carnivorous fungus you’ll generally find in your grocery store. Some fungi craft sticky nets laced with tempting scents to snare their prey. Others create deadly collars that constrict as the worm struggles, immobilizing the prey as the fungus’s hyphae penetrate its body. Some even release tiny sickle-shaped spores that, when swallowed by a nematode, wreak havoc from within.
The scenarios all end with the worm’s body invaded by the threads of its hungry captor. The oyster mushroom’s weapon of choice seems to be a toxin: Worms that touch the fungus are paralyzed, and their cells fall apart as they succumb to the hyphae. — NYT/VERONIQUE GREENWOOD