Microfungi
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Microfungi are organisms such as mold and mildew as well as rust, which cause plant diseases. They grow in plants, soil, water, insects, cow rumen, hair, and skin. The mycelia of microfungi produce thousands of tiny spores that are carried by the air, spreading the fungus. Most of the fungal body consists of microscopic threads extending through the substrate in which it grows; these threads are called hyphae.
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[edit] Harmful microfungi
Microfungi can also be harmful, causing the irritating human affliction known as athlete's foot as well as disastrous diseases of crops and trees. The potato famine in Ireland during the mid- to late 1800's was caused by a fungus called Phytophthora infestans that rotted the potato crops for several years. Types of epidermal microfungal infections are:
[edit] Diversity
Within the United States, approximately 13,000 species of microfungi on plants or plant products, are thought to exist. Specimens of microfungi are housed in the U.S. National Fungus Collections and other institutions that serve as reservoirs of information and documentation about our nation's natural heritage. By comparing the species reported in the literature with those represented in the collections, one can estimate the number of microfungi known in the United States at 29,000 species. In areas of the world where fungi have been well studied, the ratio of vascular plants to fungi is about 6 to 1, suggesting that there may actually be 120,000 species of fungi within the United States.[1]
[edit] See Also
[edit] References
- ^ Number of species of microfungi in the United States. biology.usgs.gov.
