Fungus Cowboys

摘要

The oldest known carnivorous fungus, unearthed in 100-million-year-old amber, apparently lassoed its worm prey with sticky loops. Modern carnivorous fungi are armed with constricting rings and other projections they use to trap prey, but scientists had been unsure of when these snares evolved. Amber from what once was a coastal tropical forest in southwest- ern France revealed fossilized fungi with their nematode quarry. The carnivores possessed branched filaments adorned with small rings plastered with tiny particles, suggesting that the rings were sticky.