{"id":32634,"date":"2023-08-18T02:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-08-18T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ccf29459-ae07-44ac-8610-2d8691714b35"},"modified":"2023-08-18T03:38:31","modified_gmt":"2023-08-18T01:38:31","slug":"bizarre-invasive-pore-fungus-photo-wins-global-competition","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/rss_feed\/bizarre-invasive-pore-fungus-photo-wins-global-competition\/","title":{"rendered":"Bizarre invasive pore fungus photo wins global competition"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By James Cutmore\n <\/p>

Published: Friday, 18 August 2023 at 00:00 AM<\/p>

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The winners for this year’s BMC Ecology and Evolution\u00a0image competition have just been announced, highlighting the incredible interactions between people and wildlife across the planet.<\/p>

The competition<\/a> was created to give ecologists and evolutionary biologists the opportunity to celebrate their research and is now in its third year.<\/p>

The overall winner of this year’s competition is an image of an orange pore fungus, an invasive species that has displaced other fungi<\/a> throughout the Australian rainforest<\/a>. The bright orange fruiting bodies typically grow on dead wood and can spread through spores.<\/p>

The impact of this spread is yet to become clear, but scientists are concerned about the possible dangers to the ecology of Australia.<\/p>

Other winners include reef sharks, ants paralysed by fungus, and embryonic dinosaurs<\/a>.<\/p>

Plants and fungi category runner-up \u2013 Defeated by a parasitic fungus<\/h2>
A spider seemingly defeated by a parasitic fungus. Photo by Roberto Garcia-Roa<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Paleoecology category runner-up \u2013 Paradoxical preservation<\/h2>
\"A
A microscope image of\u00a0an extracted diplodocid dinosaur blood vessel surrounded by a preserved extracellular\u00a0matrix containing remnants of cells that are approximately 150\u00a0million years old. Photo by Dr Jasmina Wiemann<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Paleoecology category winner \u2013 A peak inside a hadrosaur egg<\/h2>
\"A
A digital image depicts an example of a\u00a0\u2018primitive\u2019 hadrosaur developing within the safety of its\u00a0small egg. This image is based on a pair of\u00a0hadrosauroid dinosaur eggs and embryos dating from theUpper Cretaceous period. Photo by Wenyu Ren<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Protecting our planet category runner-up \u2013 Releasing reef sharks<\/h2>
\"An
Professor Jodie Rummer, from James\u00a0Cook University in Australia, releases a newborn black-tip reef shark (Carcharhinus melanopterus<\/em>) in Mo\u2019orea,\u00a0French Polynesia, after tagging it and collecting biometric data. Photo by Victor Huertas<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Plants and fungi category winner \u2013 Zombie ant fungus<\/h2>
\"An
A fungus parasitises the fruiting body of a zombie-ant\u00a0fungus. Zombie-ant fungi possess the remarkable ability\u00a0to manipulate the behaviour of their insect hosts, compelling them to migrate to a more favourable location for\u00a0their growth. Photo by Jo\u00e3o Araujo<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Protecting our planet category winner \u2013 Sustainable beekeeping for chimpanzees<\/h2>
\"An
Beekeepers in action at the Chimpanzee Conservation Center in Guinea. The honey produced by these bees is sold to locals, and the proceeds help to pay for the conservation of chimpanzees. Photo by Roberto Garcia-Roa<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Research in action category runner-up \u2013 Stranded humpback whale<\/h2>
\"An
Researchers conduct a necropsy on\u00a0a stranded humpback whale that beached itself at the Loch Fleet Nature Reserve, Scotland, UK, in May 2023. Photo by James Bunyan\/Tracks Ecology<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Research in action category winner \u2013 Exploring the deep<\/h2>
\"An
A team from the Hoey Reef Ecology Lab deploy an underwater Remotely\u00a0Operated Vehicle (ROV) at Diamond Reef within the\u00a0Coral Sea Marine Park, off the coast of Queensland, Australia. This advanced ROV, equipped\u00a0with multiple photo and video cameras, serves as a vital\u00a0tool enabling surveys at depths beyond the reach of divers. Photo by Victor Huertas<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Overall winner \u2013 Invasive pore fungus<\/h2>
\"Winning
The fruiting bodies of an orange pore fungus (Favolaschia calocera<\/em>) grow on deadwood in the Australian rainforest. Photo by Cornelia Sattler\/Macquarie University<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Read more:<\/strong><\/p>