Question

4. Where is phylum basidiomycota found, how do they get their food, what are some examples of these fungi and what is the name of their reproductive structure called?

Answer 1

Habitat =

Basidiomycota are found in virtually all terrestrial ecosystems, as well as freshwater and marine habitats.

Mode of Nutrition =

Many Basidiomycota obtain nutrition by decaying dead organic matter, including wood and leaf litter.

Some  Ectomycorrhizal Basidiomycota help their plant partners obtain mineral nutrients from the soil, and in return they receive sugars that the plants produce through photosynthesis .

Other symbiotic Basidiomycota form associations with insects, including leaf-cutter ants, termites, scale insects, woodwasps, and bark beetles .

Reproduction =

Basidiomycota reproduce asexually by either budding or asexual spore formation. Budding occurs when an outgrowth of the parent cell is separated into a new cell. Any cell in the organism can bud.

Asexual spore formation, however, most often takes place at the ends of specialized structures called conidiophores.

Sexual reproduction in Basidiomycota takes place in the fruiting body, in specialized structures called basidia.

Examples

• Crimini mushroom
• Portobello mushroom
• Shiitake mushroom
• Oyster mushroom
• Enoki mushroom
• Chanterelle mushroom
• White button mushroom