An Ode to Fun Guys - Mushrooms and Corals
- May 8
- 3 min read
I was never a fan of mushrooms. The portabella is simply too chewy, a vegetarian filler at most steakhouses. The sad little whitecap mushrooms, taste-less, texture-less bits in my salad. That all changed during a solo trip to Alaska. On my own in the wilderness (yes, I was stupid enough to go hiking in the forest by myself), I noticed everything - the snap of twigs on the forest floors, the trill of birds, and the beautiful red and white polka dotted Amanita muscaria mushrooms. They reminded me of little smurf houses and sparked my interest in mushrooms.
I was unaware of the diversity of coral until recently, but reefs are home to mushrooms and well as fungia (plate corals). These have grown to be some of my favorites. And you guessed it, this post is dedicated to my favorite mushrooms and fun-guys (pun intended)!
The Unexpected Charm of Mushrooms in Alaska
The Amanita mushrooms stand out immediately again the green backdrops of the Alaskan forest. They are whimsical, inviting, and familiar whether you watched The Smurfs or played Super Mario. I found myself photographing every one I could spot. And then I started noticing more mushrooms - shades of maroon, inky black mushrooms that melted into puffs of cotton, wood mushrooms growing on trees.
When I tried to catalog my mushroom photos, I discovered that literally every mushroom I took a photo of was either poisonous (to varying degrees) or a hallucinogenic. It led me to wonder - how did people first figure out which mushrooms were safe to eat? Was it pure trial and error? Feels like a lot of tummy aches and weird dreams...
Mushrooms Under the Sea? Meet the Fungia
It turns out that fungi are not limited to forests and fields. Marine fungi exist, and among them are the plate corals, from the family Fungiidae, and mushrooms, from the order Corallimorpharia. Ironically, these corals are completely different. Plate corals, most commonly Fungia, are large polyp, stony corals that come in circular and ovular shapes, typically with a single mouth. Mushrooms, on the other hand, are soft corals that typically attach themselves to rocks.
Plate corals are typically found on the sea floor of reefs into the IndoPacific. They come in an amazing array of colors and use their tentacles to draw food out of the water column and into their mouths.
While on land mushroom and fungi are the same, under the sea, they couldn't be more different. While they have the same disc shape as a plate coral and also prefer lower light and lower flow, marine mushrooms also have a foot that they use to attach themselves to the rock. Although they have a protruding mouth at the center of the disc, mushrooms largely rely on photosynthesis for energy. Some mushrooms can allegedly eat inverts and small fish, but I have never seen that in our tank. It sounds more like something their cousins the anemone would do.
We have developed quite the collection of mushrooms in our tank. They thrive under stable parameters and can add a much needed pop of color to the bottom of your tank.
Discosoma - They are generally considered to be "common mushrooms" and look relatively smooth. In our old tank we had a green Discosoma mushroom that reproduced like crazy. We don't have many of them in our current tank, but we do have a rather beautiful Jaw Breaker. It's nearly doubled in size since we have had it. And it's one that I wish would multiple like our boring green one did.
The Purple Smasher Jaw Breaker Rhodactis - These are some of my favorites. They can look fuzzy or hairy because of their larger papillae. And in certain conditions and circumstances they can develop "bounces" (large water filled vesicles). Cheeto Puff II, the left most mushroom in the gallery below, is my hands down favorite! Each bounce reminds me of an opal.
Ricordea - They are covered in what appear to be short tentacles. In my opinion, these look most akin to anemones.
Final Thoughts on Nature’s Fun Guys
Mother nature is truly extraordinary. Whether on land or in the sea, she has created mushrooms of unparalelled beauty and whimsy.
Photos are captivating