How are microorganisms identified? | |||
Microorganisms are put into groups, but a lot of microorganisms can belong to more than one group. One way that microorganisms are grouped is by the temperature in their environment. Another way to organize microorganisms is by placing them in either the prokaryot or eukaryot group. | |||
How do microorganisms reproduce?? | |||
Thermophiles reproduce either by sexual or asexual reproduction. Sexual reproduction requires a male and female organism, but asexual reproduction happens by cell division, mitosis. Thermophilic fungi reproduce by producing male and female spores that come in contact with each other to produce a new organism. | |||
What do microorganisms do? | |||
Microorganisms also are responsible for building fertile soil for plants to grow in. Microbes stick to the roots of plants and decompose dead organic matter into food for the plant to absorb. The plants that live and grow because of the microorganisms that live on them make a home for other animals to live in. Some microorganisms make people, animals, and plants sick, but others make people well and kill the bacteria on plants that make them sick. Drug companies that make medicines use hundreds of different microorganisms to make medicines that will help cure diseases. Human waste products are broken down into safer particles by some microorganism. Scientists are always looking for new ways to use microbes, and only a few uses have been listed here. | |||
What is fungi? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fungi is a group of simple plants that have no chlorophyll. There are some species of fungi that are single celled organisms, and there are other kinds of fungi that are multi-cellular organisms. Fungi are made up of filaments called hyphe that are stacked together from end to end. Some kinds of fungi live on land and other types of fungi live in water environments. Since fungi has no chlorophyll, it can not make its own food. Some types of fungi lives off of other organisms and are parasites, but other fungi species feed off of dead and decaying matter. A third kind of fungi lives with other organisms and neither the fungi or the organism is hurt. This kind of relationship is called positive symbiosis. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fungus like this one feed on the remains of dead plant and animal matter. | Spores are released from the underside of mushroom caps during the reproductive cycle of mushrooms | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
How is fungi identified? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Witches Broom Fungi attacks cacao trees that produce chocolate | Trichoderma is a good fungi, it attacks bad fungus that destroys crops. | Mushroom | Hyphae | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
How does fungi reproduce? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
When reproductive hyphae cells are made by the fungus, a mushroom shape forms at the top. The scientific name for the mushroom shape is the sporocarp. It has one purpose, that is to release reproductive spores. The sporocarp is not part of the live fungi. Reproduction in fungi is sexual, but the spores which contain the reproductive cells must somehow come in contact with one another before fungi can reproduce. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
What does fungi do? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fungi are important decomposers of dead animal and plant matter. They break down deadorganic matter into simple compounds that can be absorbed by the plants around it. During the process of decomposing matter, fungi returns carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. Green plants use the carbon dioxide during photosynthesis to produce food. Oxygen is released into the atmosphere during the process of photosynthesis, so animal and human life depends on the fungi for survival. Plants also benefit from fungi because some fungi settle around the roots of plants. As the fungus decomposes dead matter around the roots of the plant, it leaves behind nutrients that the plant needs. Some fungi, like mushrooms, are used as ingredients in recipes. They add flavor to meals. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Fungus in caves break down minerals in rock walls.
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