The January mushroom of the month is Arthrophaga myriapodina, another Zombie Fungus!
🙌 to Leigh for naming that mushroom correctly and becoming the 1,259th member of Central Texas Mycology! Become a supporting member to stay dialed-in with events & discover next month’s mystery mushroom.
What IS it?
It’s Another Zombie Fungus!
A new species and genus of fungus, Arthrophaga myriapodina kills flat backed millipedes. This species was first seen over a century ago but never described until 2017. Similar to the zombie ant fungus, this one also induces pre-death climbing behavior in its hosts and once it reaches a high vantage point, the millipede makes a death grip and the fungus forcibly-discharges spores.
WHERE CAN I FIND IT?
They are in Texas!
iNaturalist and Mushroom Observer observations and study of fungarium specimens suggest the fungus occurs widely in eastern North America with the furthest west occurring in Central Texas then several in northern California. Using a 365nm UV Flashlight, they can be easily found at night after several days of rain. Look for glowing millipedes holding on for dear life at high vantage points like tall grasses.
Can i get InFECted with this Fungus?
While zombie fungi are real and numerous, Mycologists aren’t worried about these types of fungus infecting people. “They’re super species-specific,” said Charissa de Bekker, an assistant professor in the biology department at Utrecht University in the Netherlands. “They have very refined machinery to interact with their hosts and do these really interesting things like changing behavior, but they can’t even jump from one species to the next,” let alone to an organism as distantly related as a human.
Source: CNN
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