{"id":22590,"date":"2022-11-29T17:23:28","date_gmt":"2022-11-29T16:23:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.discoverwildlife.com\/?p=71434"},"modified":"2022-11-29T18:12:36","modified_gmt":"2022-11-29T17:12:36","slug":"discover-the-fascinating-fungus-pilobolus-crystallinus-aka-dung-cannon","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/rss_feed\/discover-the-fascinating-fungus-pilobolus-crystallinus-aka-dung-cannon\/","title":{"rendered":"Discover the fascinating fungus Pilobolus crystallinus aka \u2018dung cannon\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>

By Stuart Blackman\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 29 November 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

\n\n

\u00a0<\/span>The minuscule fungus Pilobolus crystallinus,<\/em> which are known both as hat-throwers and dung-cannons, \u2013 grow, feed and breed on dung.<\/span><\/p>\n

How does Pilobolus crystallinus<\/em> reproduce?<\/h2>\n

In order to reproduce, their spores are cast onto the grass, where they are swallowed by grazing mammals and then re-deposited on the pasture amid a steaming pile of nutritious manure.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The problem is that grazing mammals, quite understandably, tend to avoid excrement when choosing which patch of grass to eat. So the hat-throwers have evolved a spectacular way of projecting their offspring far and wide.<\/span><\/p>\n

How fast is Pilobolus crystallinus<\/em>?<\/h2>\n

The spores develop in a microscopic bundle that sits atop a fluid-filled bladder on a stalk. The bladder expands until the internal pressure causes it to squirt out its contents in a powerful jet, propelling the spores away at speeds of up to 90kph.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Even more impressive is that they reach their top speed in just a few millionths of a second \u2013 a rate of acceleration exceeding that of a bullet shot from an AK-47 rifle.\u00a0 <\/span>Even though the fungi rarely reaches 5cm in height, this small organism can project its spores up to 200m away.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\n