The Largest Living Creature Is A Fungus As Heavy As 1500 Elephants

Since we were little kids, we have always thought the dinosaur is the largest creature on Earth, but they are extinct. And though you may think the blue whale is the largest living creature in the world, it’s not true either. The largest living organism on the planet, in fact, is a fungus existing around us but hardly noticed.

Scientifically named Armillaria ostoyae, the gargantuan fungus covers over 8.8 square kilometers of the Malheur National Forest in the US. More impressively, it weighs about 600 tons and is believed to have existed for between 2500 and 8500 years.

For the most part of the year, it lives as rhizomorph, or a network of interjoined fungus filaments underground. But in the fall, it will rise above the ground as edible honey mushrooms, showing its impressive massive territory.

Since the entire structure grows by only 1 meter each year, its expansion over time is even more impressive. But how can it grow to cover such a large area?

BY KILLING HOST TREES

For the past thousands of years, the largest living organism has been slowly infecting, killing, eating, and engulfing countless trees and bushes that block its path. As an infamous killer of the forest, the fungus’ rhizomorphs act as highways for white rot to travel between hosts. To infect trees and shrubs, the white rot encircles, attacks, and kills their roots while rhizomorphs continue its path and seek the next host.

Many parasites require a living host but the largest living organism in the world can live off it hosts for a long time after it kills them. By not requiring a living host, the Armillaria ostoyae can achieve limitless expansion without needing self-regulation like other parasites that rely on living hosts. The attacked host dies after months or years.

One can track the progress of this fungus by following the expansion of dead and dying shrubs and trees. In the fall, it’s easy to detect infected as well as newly dead trees as they sprout honey mushrooms.

BY SNEAKING UP HOSTS AND GETTING RID OF COMPETITORS

Biologists compared the largest living organism’s genome with other related fungus species. They found that the fungus has evolved its devious genetic ways to infect trees.

For instance, trees have chemical markers alerting them of the fungus’ presence, but the fungus can reabsorb it. Therefore, trees are not alerted and the fungus can sneak up without being noticed. The rhizomorphs have also developed proteins to kill cells and eat the cellulose glue holding plant cell walls together.

If another competitor parasite arrives at the host the Armillaria is living off, it will produce a toxic chemical environment to make them run away.

Whew, this is not just the largest living organism, but probably also the scariest.

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