Fungi are much more than what comes in the pan. In fact, they travel thousands of kilometers through our soils as mysterious threads. Some live as parasites and kill cruelly. Others are masters of cooperation.
Many people underestimate fungi, because they can only see a tiny part of them. But what we see are only their fruit bodies. Fungi are much more than that - mysterious filaments that live secretly under the earth. There is a lively exchange trade: The fungi give off almost all the minerals they find in the soil to the surrounding plants. In turn, the trees supply them with sugar so they can grow. Trees can give up to one-fifth of their sugar to some types of fungi.
However, it is not always so peaceful. In addition to the soil, fungi can also thrive in plants and creatures - in the best case after their death, but in the worst case also in living ones. In the rainforest there are some parasitic fungi that attack ants and cause them to climb like zombies on plants. After the ant died by a poison cocktail, the fungus lets its threads grow out of their bodies. The next few days he feeds on the internal organs of the animal, until his fruit body is ripe and his spurs trickle on the ground in search of a new victim.
Fungi are a very special way of species, neither plant nor animal. They cannot fulfil photosynthesis unlike plants, they must eat. This makes them even closer to the animals than the plants. Unlike animals, however, they do not eat with their teeth or mouth. Instead, they decompose their food with enzymes. With their help they can - depending on the type - decompose almost any substance in the world. Researchers have even found a fungus that eats polyurethane (plastic). See: http://aem.asm.org/content/77/17/6076.full
Fungi can even support planting trees in the desert. One case shows how humans benefit of this feature. There is little water in the Sahelzone, which is likely to intensify as a result of climate change. However, researchers are experimenting very successfully with the jojoba tree, which bears nutritious fruit. If you vaccinate the roots with certain fungi, the trees grow much faster. The reason: the fungi penetrate very deeply into the soil and reach places where water is still available. They provide the tree with water and vitamins.
In this regard, fungi are very similar to humans. They also cannot produce vitamins, but they need them. The partnership with plants helps them. Virtually all trees you see are associated with fungi. In total, around 80 to 90 percent of all plants live in a symbiosis with fungi. This should be a mantra for us humans to live in symbiosis with nature.