Risk of disappearing for one in three fungi that keep alive ecosystems
Nearly one in three Mirms evaluated by an international organization was found to be threatened with extinction, a loss that threatens with chain reactions to ecosystems around the world.
Fungi, the second largest kingdom of life after animals, live with the roots of many plants and offer them water and nutrients. They also deconstruct dead organic matter and thus play an important role in the recycling of soil nutrients.
In addition to their role in ecosystems, they are also a source of new antibiotics and drugs and are used in the food industry to ferment bread and beer.
The European Mushroom Hygrocybe Intermedia is in danger of being lost forever (Per Fadnes / CC by 4.0)
« Fungi are the obscure heroes of life on earth, as they form the foundations of healthy ecosystems. However, they have been neglected » stated Dr. Grethell Angellar, Director General of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) who presented the evaluation.
Of the approximately 2.5 million species of fungi on the planet, about 155,000 have been officially recognized.
Few of these species produce mushrooms, the fruiting bodies from which spores are released. Most fungi live as « Mycelia », fiber networks spread out in soil or in wood or other organic materials.
IUCN’s first evaluation for fungi covers 1,300 species, of which 411 are in danger of extinction and pass on the official « red list » of endangered species.
The risk of extinction in Europe also faces the fungus of Tricholoma colossus (Irene Andersson / CC by-SA 3.0)
Of these, 279 species are at risk due to the spread of cultivated areas and cities, while 91 are at risk of pollution, mainly from agricultural fertilizers.
Still 198 species are threatened due to logging and deforestation, while more than 50 are at risk of climate change that increases forest fires and affecting rainfall.
Even in the artificial forests where IUCN emphasizes, the IUCN points out, the cutting of older trees leaves no room for the Mycenae recovery.
« Fungi play a crucial role for all forms of life, » commented Carolin Pollock, a red list coordinator. « Without fungi, ecosystems can collapse quickly. »
