Lichen The Vibe

Spore Sized: The Deer Shield Mushroom’s Secret Identity

The familiar deer mushroom growing on rotting logs is actually at the center of a cryptic species complex revealed through DNA studies, and true Pluteus cervinus is disti

Free Pink Gills, Radish Smell, Horned Cystidia — Meet Pluteus cervinus

The familiar deer mushroom found growing on rotting hardwood may look like a straightforward species, but DNA research revealed something much more complicated: the tradi

Spore Sized: The Phoenix Oyster’s Hidden Chemistry Explained

This pale oyster mushroom thrives in warmer conditions while producing lovastatin analogs, ergothioneine and bioactive polysaccharides — and its enzyme secretome changes

Pleurotus pulmonarius: The Oyster Mushroom Built for Warm Climates

The classic oyster mushroom prefers familiar temperate conditions, but its close relative Pleurotus pulmonarius is built for warmer environments — and its biology goes we

Spore Sized: The Oyster Mushroom’s Hidden Life as a Predator

The everyday oyster mushroom has a second lifestyle that most people never see: it can chemically attack and immobilize microscopic nematodes. Pleurotus ostreatus combine

The Oyster Mushroom That Hunts and Kills Microscopic Animals

The oyster mushroom is one of the most familiar fungi on Earth — but behind its reputation as a cultivated food is a surprisingly sophisticated predator. Pleurotus ostrea

Spore Sized: Inside the Golden Oyster’s Most Unusual Molecules

What makes the Golden Oyster Mushroom chemically unusual? Pleurotus citrinopileatus combines its unmistakable golden-yellow appearance with high levels of ergothioneine,

Pleurotus citrinopileatus: The Chemistry of the Golden Oyster

The Golden Oyster Mushroom is famous for its brilliant yellow clusters, but its chemistry may be even more interesting than its appearance. Pleurotus citrinopileatus is a

Spore Sized: Inside the Chemistry of the Bleeding Fairy Helmet

What looks like a fragile little woodland mushroom is actually a remarkably interesting chemical system. Mycena haematopus, commonly known as the Bleeding Mycena or Bleed

Mycena haematopus: The Bleeding Mushroom Explained

A tiny woodland mushroom can produce a dark red to purplish liquid when its stem is damaged — and the chemistry behind that “bleeding” is far more unusual than its delica

Spore Sized: Why Does This Polypore Look Like a Trumpet?

Why does a polypore sometimes look nothing like the classic bracket fungus? In this focused episode, we explore Picipes tubaeformis, the Trumpet Polypore, a relatively un

Rare, Slender, and Almost Delicate — The Trumpet Polypore

Picipes tubaeformis, commonly called the Trumpet Polypore, breaks one of the most familiar images of a polypore: instead of forming a thick shelf or bracket, this uncommo

Spore Sized: Why Does Phyllotopsis nidulans Smell So Bad?

Phyllotopsis nidulans is a striking wood-decaying mushroom that can be surprisingly unpleasant to smell. Its bright orange-to-yellow fruiting bodies may look inviting, bu

Orange, Fuzzy, and Foul-Smelling: Meet Phyllotopsis nidulans

One of the Northern Hemisphere’s most recognizable wood-inhabiting mushrooms looks vaguely like an oyster mushroom—but its powerful skunk-cabbage or rotten-egg odor quick

Spore Sized: Lichens Are Chemical Factories Hiding in Plain Sight

Lichens can look like little patches of moss, stains or crust growing quietly on rocks and trees. But they are something far stranger. They are not plants and not single

Lichens Aren’t Plants: The Strange Partnership Behind Them

Lichens may look like simple patches of growth on rocks and trees, but they are among Earth’s most unusual organisms. They are not plants and not single organisms, but co

Spore Sized: The Tiny Lectin Inside a Shaggy Scaly Mushroom

Pholiota squarrosa is a familiar woodland mushroom, but its chemistry has made it surprisingly important to modern fungal research. This episode explores the species' di

Pholiota squarrosa: The Mushroom Scientists Keep Finding New Uses For

A familiar cluster of dry, shaggy yellowish mushrooms growing around the base of a tree might not look extraordinary. Yet Pholiota squarrosa produces unusual phenylpropan

Spore Sized: The Sticky Yellow Pholiota With a Hidden Chemical History

Pholiota limonella may look like a straightforward yellow woodland mushroom, but identifying it accurately can require much closer examination. Its sticky, scale-covered

Why Pholiota limonella Is More Complicated Than It Looks

Pholiota limonella is an easily overlooked member of the scalycap fungi, producing lemon-yellow to yellowish caps that can become intensely slimy and are often covered wi