Download KINGDOM FUNGI

KINGDOM FUNGI
(Chapter 28)
1. Fungi species come in a variety of shapes, sizes, & colors. They are all
eukaryotic heterotrophs & most are multicellular. Fungi are found everywhere
air, water, & soil, damp surfaces, dead organic matter, animal & plant parasites.
(mushrooms, puffballs, rusts, mold, ringworm, mildew, athlete’s foot, & yeast)
2. Fungi have cell walls made of the organic compound chitin. Most species are
made up of thread-like filaments called hyphae that anchor the fungus to
its food source, absorb nutrients, & form reproductive spores.
3. Once fungi are anchored to a food source, they release enzymes to predigest it
before absorbing the nutrients - it cannot digest food inside its body.
4. Some fungi species are saprophytes. They decompose huge amounts of organic
debris in the ecosystems.
5. Parasitic species of fungi harm living plants & animals. (athletes’ foot,
ringworm,
crop blight & rust)
6. Beneficial fungi include the antibiotic penicillin & yeast to produce such foods
as
bread, wine, cheese, yogurt, & soy sauce.
7. Depending on species, fungi may reproduce with:
a) asexual spores that grow when conditions are favorable (penicillin)
b) fragmentation when pieces of dried hyphae are broken off & grow
(athlete’s foot)
c) budding when a new individual pinches off from the parent (yeast)
d) sexual spores that produce 2 different mating types that encounter one
another & fuse
8. Lichens are a combination of fungus & green algae or cyanobacteria. In this
symbiotic relationship, both organisms benefit. Algae or cyanobacteria
produce food while the fungi attaches to a surface & absorbs water. Lichens
are 1 of the first organisms to establish themselves on rocks & begin forming
soil for plant growth. They can survive harsh deserts & bitter cold - but, they
cannot tolerate pollution.