Glowing mushroom

Continuous glowing in the tropical forests of Brazil, Mycena luxaeterna is like tiny stars on the ground.

National Geographic said that over the years, Dennis Desjardin, an expert at the University of San Francisco, USA, and colleagues searched for new fungi in many tropical forests near the Atlantic and in the Brazilian territory. . They often search during the moonlit nights because if they go on moonless nights, they will not be able to see their own hands.

'But when we looked down, we felt the ground was like the sky, with countless lights flashing. Those light sources are tiny Mycena luxaeterna mushrooms. The scene is fantastic , 'Desjardin said.

Photo of Mycena luxaeterna in daytime (top) and night (below). Photo: National Geographic.

Mycena luxaeterna has an adhesive on the body that maintains moisture in hot weather in the daytime. Glue also helps them catch insects to make food. This is one of the 7 newly discovered glowing mushrooms all over the world recently, bringing the total number of these fungal species to 71.

The search team claimed that Mycena luxaeterna glowed for one or more purposes. For example, they glow at night to attract the attention of insects that specialize in foraging at night. This is a tactic needed to survive in dense tropical forests that the wind cannot spread mushroom spores to other places. The insects that work at night will help the fungus spread spores.

It is worth noting that all glowing fungi emit yellow-green light with the same wavelength. Desjardin thinks light emitted by a chemical process, like the glow of fireflies.

Most glowing mushrooms are distributed in closed, dense forests of tropical regions of the world - like Southeast Asia, South America or the Caribbean. Until now, the scientific community still does not understand why they live only in the rainforest.