FUNGUS Fungi are neither plant nor animals but a very different type of organism. They do not contain chlorophyll or the molecule used in photosynthesis to produce sugars with the help of sunlight. They do not have a root system like that found in trees, shrubs, flowers, and grasses. As a result, they cannot manufacture their own food, but, do feed themselves by digesting organic matter. Mushroom hunters are familiar with many of the mycorrhizal fungi characteristics of the north temperate forests; especially basidiomycetes such as gilled mushrooms, chanterelles, boletes, corals, puffballs, and jelly fungi. Mycorrhizas in these forests have a small percentage of ascomycetes such as morels, truffles, cup fungi, and elfin saddles. Lesser known of the more common mycorrhizal fungi are the zygomycetes, relatives of black bread mold. Fungi can be divided into three basic categories based on their relationship to their environment: Parasitic fungi that live off…
