大象传媒

Professor at Cardiff University鈥檚 School of BioSciences, Lynne Boddy is a woodland fungal ecologist, especially interested in mycelial interactions when different species of fungus compete for the same food source, the foraging behaviour of fungi, and the effect of climate change on them. She is also involved in novel uses for mycelial networks, for instance as models for other adaptive systems, such as road and railway traffic networks.

Jens Henrik Petersen is a mycologist, photographer and author of . He has taught mycology at Denmark鈥檚 Aarhus University for more than twenty years and has illustrated several popular books on edible mushrooms. He co-created a computer programme and online service that allows users to perform simple searches or complex identifications of fungi. You can see a small selection of Jens's photographs below as well as the main images at the top of this page.

Phil Ross is an artist, inventor and self-taught mycologist who works in the realm of 鈥渂iotechniques鈥�, making sculptural and architectural works from plants and fungi, and videos about live cultures. His multi-decade research into mushrooms has led to his 鈥渕ycotecture鈥� series, an experiment in using reishi mushrooms as a sustainable construction material. The original art project expanded into workshop-made and also what Phil hopes will be other commercial products based on fungal mycelium.

I never in my life expected to fall off my chair laughing while listening with interest to a mycologist!听 Lynne Boddy鈥檚 students (I鈥檓 a teacher) must be very lucky. Thank you Lynne and the other participants, for brightening up my day, as well as teaching me a lot I didn鈥檛 know about fungi.

Alec Rylands

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I had no idea of the complexity of life of the not-so-humble fungus in its 1001 varieties.听听Well done to you for presenting such an absorbing divertissement in the,听O so very early hours B.S.T. and to the excellent panel of experts who have enlightened me in the world of the mushroom. I shall consume my full-English breakfast more contemplatively from now on.

Malcolm Hensher