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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Environment
Whitney Bauck

‘Without them there is no life’: the race to understand the mysterious world of Africa’s fungi

A white mushroom with a filigree-like cap sprouts from leaf mould. A fly sits on the top of it
A longnet stinkhorn in Langoué Baï, part of the Republic of Congo’s Odzala-Kokoua national park. Fungi ‘feed 90% of terrestrial plants. Without them, there is no life,’ says Anna Ralaiveloarisoa, a Malagasy mycologist who has identified 200 new species in Madagascar. Photograph: Nature Picture Library/Alamy

Madagascar has long been celebrated for its remarkable wildlife, with the vast majority of its species – from ring-tailed lemurs to certain species of baobab trees – found nowhere else on the planet. But when discussing the island nation’s endemic treasures, fungi are often left out of the conversation.

Yet “fungi are some of the most important things in the world”, says Anna Ralaiveloarisoa, a Malagasy scientist. “They feed 90% of terrestrial plants. Without them, there is no life on the Earth.”

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