home

Chapter 7  Fungi

I. Characteristics of fungi

    A. Heterotrophs

        1. Do not contain chlorophyll

        2. Digest substance on which they are growing

        3. Absorb digested food

        4. Form symbiotic relationships

        5. Called the earth's "cleanup crew"

    B. Structure

        1. Few are unicellular

        2. Most are multicellular

            a. Have hyphae

            b. Many nuclei

    C. Reproduction

        1. Produce fruiting bodies with spores

        2. Budding

II. Forms of fungi

    A. Three basic forms

        1. Mushrooms

            a. Umbrella-shaped cap

            b. Produce spores

            c. Do not contain chlorophyll

        2. Yeasts

            a. Unicellular

            b. Reproduce by budding

        3. Molds

            a. Fuzzy, shapeless, fairly flat

            b. Used to make food

            c. Used to make medicines

III. How fungi affect other organisms

    A. Fungi and disease

        1. Damage or destroy crops

        2. Produce toxins (poison)

        3. Kill animals

        4. Infect humans

    B. Fungus-root associations

        1. Coat plant roots

        2. Increase plant's ability to get nutrients

        3. Protect plant roots

    C. Lichens

        1. Made up of two organisms

            a. Fungus

            b. Alga

        2. Neither can survive without the other

        3. Symbiotic relationship

        4. Known as "pioneers"

top

home