The Godzilla of fungi

[Dr. Whom]

A fossil of a 20 ft high fungus found! Matango for real!!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070423/sc_nm/fossil_fungus_dc

[Torgo]

That's really interesting. 

There's a fungus amongus.

[Andrew]

That's really interesting. 

There's a fungus amongus.

To make even more with the rhyme, there is a humongous fungus amongus.

An interesting thing is that the professor mentions that a fungus that huge would have a hard time surviving in our world.  The competition from modern plants and the threat from modern animals makes it unlikely such a large fungus could ever develop.

[Shadow]

Prototaxites...that sounds like the bad guy's name in cheap 80's space opera.

[Newt]

How does that compare to the underground single-organism found in Oregon several years ago? (Didn't X-Files or some such touch on it?)

http://www.scienceagogo.com/news/20030226211012data_trunc_sys.shtml

"What is probably the largest living organism on earth has been discovered in the Malheur National Forest in eastern Oregon. A fungus living three feet underground is estimated to cover 2,200 acres. After testing samples from various locations, scientists say it is all one organism.

Officially known as Armillaria ostoyae, or the honey mushroom, the fungus is 3.5 miles across and takes up 1,665 football fields. The small mushrooms visible above ground are only the tip of the iceberg.

Experts estimate that the giant mushroom is at least 2,400 years old, but could be 7,200 years old.

Previously, the world's largest organism was another Armillaria ostoyae, which covers a mere 1,500 acres near Mt. Adams in Washington state."


Its no walking mushroom for sure; but for sheer size...and I find the following statements to be especially disturbing (and great sub-premise for a bad movie?) 

"In other research, scientists have determined that fungi are more closely related to human beings and animals than to other plants.

Moreover, while humans and most species are divided into only two sexes, mushrooms contain over 36,000 sexes."     Ew.

[Raffine]

"Moreover, while humans and most species are divided into only two sexes, mushrooms contain over 36,000 sexes."

Yet not one of them even remotely resembles Michael Jackson.

Can you imagine how complicated their personal ads must be?

[Andrew]

"METOIJGSGOU seeks ORQUOGOSUGOSU for cuddling and spore exchange."