Friday 24 May 2013

Cookeina Mushroom

Image: Geoff Gallice
Fairy bath!

Image: Drriss
Lots of fairy baths!

Image: berniedup
Lots of hairy, fairy baths!

Image: Brian Gratwicke
Cookeina is a genus of tiny Cup Mushrooms that can be found growing on rotting wood all over the world.

Within the mushroom are cells called asci, which are full of spores that are supposed to get released so they can grow into whole new mushrooms. When it rains, the mushroom fills up with water like a miniature bird bath and the asci absorb it and bulge with the pressure.

When it stops raining, the water level drops. The tips of the asci dry up and because the tips have thinner walls than the rest of cell, they POP! The spores are finally released!

Image: newmy51
Some mean-spirited Cookeina mushrooms have hairs which look as if they stop people from taking a bath in them. Shame...

Image: David Hamill
Frog bath!

4 comments:

TexWisGirl said...

they're cute! that last photo is precious! :)

Joseph JG said...

It looks like the little fellow is having a paddle under the sun!

Bewildermunster said...

Wow what weird mushrooms! Neat!

Joseph JG said...

And tidy!