The largest mushroom in the world as a prize for lovers of quiet hunting. The largest mushrooms found by man: weight and height Giant mushrooms

In China, scientists have found the largest fungus, which belongs to the tinder fungus (F. Ellipsoidea). The weight of its fruiting body is approximately 500 kg, the macromycete reaches a length of about 10 meters, and a width of about 80 cm. preliminary estimates and is at least 20 years old. It contains 450 million spores.

Polypores are fungi that grow on wood and soil. Outwardly, they differ from the "classical" macromycetes. Their fruiting bodies, as a rule, are rigid and flat plates. Discovered in China, the largest for a long time grew underground, so it remained hidden from view. This allowed the macromycete to grow to such a huge size. Scientists who found the mushroom say that there are a lot of tinder fungi in that area, but no one has ever found such giant specimens before. They claim they were just studying local macromycetes and accidentally stumbled upon a strange brown mound. Upon closer examination, it turned out to be a huge tinder fungus.

However, biologists discovered the largest mushroom in the world in the relict forests of the United States. It is considered the largest living being on the planet. However, if the reader imagines a mushroom the size of a cottage, then he will be disappointed. Macromycete honey or dark honey agaric (Armillaria ostoyae) fits easily in the hand and is not too remarkable. It's all about the area of ​​the mycelium, which grew in the Oregon forests for about 2500 years, destroying root systems trees on your way. Therefore, the mushroom is considered a monster. Its mycelium, which is a single organism, occupied 880 hectares of one of national parks in Oregon. Its tentacles are located underground and entangle a territory equal in size to 1665. Therefore, this macromycete is considered the largest on the planet.

Of course, many will be interested in the question, is it possible to eat the largest mushroom? Oregon biologist Tina Dreisbach claims that honey agaric is edible. However, she would not advise eating a "monster". Tina says that although the mushroom is called honey, it does not taste sweet at all, and you can only eat it with a lot of garlic and butter.

For American biologists now main task is to learn to control the growth of macromycete mycelium. Because the most big mushrooms in a world like honey agaric can nullify whole woodlands. The problem also lies in the fact that macromycetes have been developing naturally for thousands of years. Therefore, interrupting its development can negatively affect the ecosystem of the Oregon forests. Scientists are still studying the body and trying to predict the consequences of any action. A photo of the largest mushroom can be seen in this article.

If we talk about traditional macromycetes in the usual sense, then the leader in size can be called Macrocybe Titans, which grows in Caribbean countries and USA. In one of the southern Mexican states, a specimen was found in 2007, weighing 20 kg and about 70 cm high. However, this find is not the only one. In 2005, a mushroom was found in the United States, the weight of which was as much as 28 kilograms. Such big sizes make this macromycete the object of close attention of the scientific community.

Kira Stoletova

Mushrooms are unique organisms that combine signs of flora and fauna. They differ from plants in that they produce oxygen from carbon dioxide, and from animals in the ability to move and physiological characteristics. The largest mushrooms are admired by people all over the world.

general information

Today, a person knows more than a hundred thousand species of organisms. A certain percentage of them bring a lot of benefits to a person. Therefore, in all corners of the planet - in the USA and Russia, in Australia and Brazil - an edible mushroom is the basis variety of dishes. The product is used in the following areas:

1. Food industry. Winemaking, production of fermented milk products, bakery and confectionery.
2. Medical industry. Penicillin is made from mushrooms. as well as other drugs and antibiotics.

They are partly used in veterinary medicine as a medicine, as well as raw materials for the production of medicines.

Unique Features

Giant mushrooms, like all others, grow as a collection of cells, gathering into a thread of mycelium.

As soon as this system matures, it creates a pressure of 700-750 tons per 1 m². In fungi, the filaments perform the function of the gastrointestinal tract. In the body of mushrooms there are special enzymes - enzymes - which they release to crush food and consume the necessary substances.

Top giant mushrooms

Biologists note that finding a huge mushroom is not so difficult.

Some representatives reach large sizes only thanks to good conditions development. Facilities mass media actively promote this topic. Therefore, lists appeared that combine the largest mushrooms in the world:

• 10th place is clearly not the largest mushroom, when compared with the rest, but in the UK it is a clear favorite. He was found by a young girl gardening. Plant weight - 2 kg, hat - 46 cm in diameter.
• 9th place - Boletus. It was discovered in Russia in Tomsk region. Boletus is a contender for the title of the largest edible mushroom. It is distinguished not only by a hat with a diameter of 36 cm and a weight of 2.4 kg, but also by its color. This organism, found in Russia, has a brown stem and cap.
• 8th place - Lingzhi. In Russia and CIS countries, it is known as Trutovik Lacquered. China's largest mushroom is Lingzhi. Its weight: 7.5 kg, a hat measuring 1 m 7 cm. Lingzhi are unique in that they are actively used in folk medicine. These organisms contain polysaccharides. They increase the dynamism of blood cells, thereby increasing immunity.
• 7th place - Russian Raincoat. He was found by a resident of the Perm region. This is a large mushroom with a cap diameter of 172 cm, a leg of 50 cm and a mass of 12 kg. This type of mushroom is edible, so it was listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the largest edible mushroom in the world.
• 6th place - Italian Champignon, found in the province of Baria. Its weight is 14 kg. The finder could not carry it in his hands, so he had to use a car to take the find with a big hat to the village. The mushroom turned out to be edible.
• 5th place - Chinese macromycetes. Another representative, surprising with its parameters. It is distinguished by its non-standard shape and its size. The hat diameter is approximately 100 cm, weight - 15 kg. Scientists have not yet been able to classify it, but it rightfully takes its place in the list of the largest mushrooms in the world.
• 4th place - titanium macromycetes. These huge mushrooms are known for their unique parameters. In the United States, two such specimens have been discovered, claiming to be the largest mushroom on the planet. The first one was found in 2005 in one of the coffee fields. He weighed 28 kg. The second applicant was found in 2007, his weight was 20 kg, the leg height was 70 cm.
• 3rd place - Canadian macromycetes. It, like the rest of the representatives of this species, is distinguished by its enormous size. A raincoat of enormous size and weighing 26 kg was found in the forest. This surprised people so much that they called the mushroom the largest on earth.
• 2nd place - Chinese Fomitiporia ellipsoidea. A huge plant was found on about. Hainan. Hat with a diameter of 88 cm, height - 10.8 m, weight - 5 q. There are few plants on earth that can compare with it. The volume was 400-525 cm³. The peculiarity of this organism is that it does not develop outside, but underground.
• 1st place is rightfully occupied by the largest mushroom in the world, originally from the forests of the United States. This living organism belongs to the Armilaria family, whose representatives are distinguished by their impressive parameters. Most of it was out of human sight. Armillaria ostoyae are macromycetes also known as Honey Mushrooms. The fungus is a single organism. She occupied an area of ​​880 hectares in an Oregon park. The networks of Armillaria ostoyae have sprouted on an area equal to almost 1,700 football fields, so this organism is deservedly called the largest mushroom on the planet.

From time to time, information appears in the media that the largest mushroom in the world has been discovered. new record shifts among such beings. According to biologists, the huge parameters of the new finds are a natural phenomenon and are not a sign of any anomaly. These representatives of a special form of life, which combine the characteristics of plants and animals, can grow to enormous sizes if they are given favorable conditions.

Scientists find it surprising that many of the giant mushrooms discovered are edible. It is amazing that these giants were able to survive and grow to an impressive size, despite the efforts of many mushroom pickers and the love of animals to feast on fresh mushrooms.

In the Oregon forests located in the United States, biologists managed to find a mushroom that is striking in its size. True, the terrestrial part of this record holder cannot surprise - Armillaria ostoyae fits in the palm of your hand. These mushrooms are known to us under the name honey mushrooms. The real surprise among scientists was the size of the mycelium, which impresses with its parameters:

• the area occupied by the rhizome of the fungus is 880 hectares;
• about 1665 football fields can be covered with mycelium;
• the age of formation of the root system of the fungus is 2500 years;
• the estimated weight of the mycelium is more than 600 kg.

Biologists after research have found that the discovered Armillaria ostoyae is not only the largest among other fungi, but also the greatest living creature on the planet. Even the roots of some centuries-old trees were destroyed by this giant's mycelium.

In 2010, a huge tree fungus Phellinus ellipsoideus was discovered in China. In about 20 years, he managed to reach a height of 10.85 m. The width of his hat reaches 88 cm. Scientists managed to discover it during the study of various tree mushrooms on the island of Hainan. The giant grew underground, which did not allow him to be discovered earlier. According to a rough estimate by biologists, Phellinus ellipsoideus weighs up to 500 kg.

In 2005, a Mexican biologist found a macrocybe mushroom in the United States that grew between coffee trees and weighed 28 kg. After 2 years, another macrocybe of impressive size was discovered on a coffee plantation in Mexico. The giant, found in 2007, towered 70 cm above the ground. Its weight was 20 kg. Now scientists are trying to establish whether coffee trees have a positive effect on mushrooms, which contributes to their rapid growth.

Christian Terren discovered a raincoat in the forest, which struck with its size. This mushroom was found in Canada. In this country, a raincoat was first encountered, weighing 26 kg. It was discovered by accident, and immediately hit the pages of newspapers. Thanks to the place hidden from the eyes and favorable weather conditions the fungus was able to reach colossal proportions.

Biologists still cannot identify the type of fungus found in China's Yunnan province. This amazing creature had one leg and a lot of small hats that merged into one top. The diameter of such an unusual hat reached 1 m. Macromycete weighed 15 kg.

The real giant was found in the Italian province of Baria. A resident of one of the villages near the house came across a huge champignon. The weight of the find reached 14 kg. Careful examination showed that this giant is quite edible. The champignon was brought home by a lucky mushroom picker and cooked. Dishes from it were enough to arrange a small feast for the inhabitants of the house and their neighbors.

Another of the record holders was a huge raincoat, weighing 12 kg. This giant mushroom was found in Perm region. But, according to biologists, larger raincoats are also found in Russia. According to unconfirmed data, micromycetes were detected, the weight of which reached 20 kg. The found mushroom was delivered to Perm University for study.

A place of honor among the largest mushrooms goes to the varnished tinder fungus. The giant was discovered by residents of the small Chinese town of Hezhou. The Chinese call this mushroom lingzhi. It has been used in alternative medicine for more than 2000 years for the preparation of healing potions. The weight of the find was 7.5 kg, and the diameter of this giant reached 107 cm.

Another mushroom of considerable size was discovered in Russia. A huge boletus was found by a resident of the Tomsk region. The hat of the discovered giant in diameter reached 36 cm. The stem of the mushroom towered 28 cm above the ground. The mushroom was edible and not damaged by worms. Weighing showed that the found giant weighs 2.4 kg.

After the rainy season, a young girl from England managed to find a huge raincoat. The diameter of the giant was 46 cm, and its weight was 2 kg. For rainy England, such huge mushrooms are not uncommon. True, they rarely grow to such sizes. Often forest animals feast on them or they fall into the baskets of mushroom pickers.

Mushrooms are a special form of life that combines the characteristics of plants and animals. Among them there are champions in height and weight. Biologists believe that giant mushrooms are not an anomaly. Any mushroom can become a giant if it grows in favorable conditions for it. And oddly enough, most of the largest mushrooms are edible, which by some miracle did not fall into the mushroom picker's basket and were not eaten by animals.

The list includes the largest mushrooms in the world, which became known to the media.

weight 2 kg

Unlocks ten large mushrooms. The record holder was discovered by a young gardener, Terry Hodson-Walker, after the rainy season. The width of the giant's hat was approximately 46 centimeters, and it weighed 2 kilograms. After the discovery, the girl decided to apply to the Guinness Book of Records in order for the macromycete to be officially recognized as the largest mushroom in the world. The scientific name of the discovered fungus is Calvatia gigantea. This is an ordinary raincoat, which can be found almost all over the world. This species can reach colossal sizes, but often becomes a victim of forest animals that are not averse to feasting on a raincoat.

Boletus from Russia weight 2.4 kg

Another contender for the title of the largest mushroom in the world is found in the Tomsk region. Local mushroom picker Alexei Korol found a giant boletus in the forest near his village. The diameter of the cap of the giant mushroom was 36 centimeters, and the height of the stem was 28 cm. The weight of the record holder was 2 kilograms 400 grams! As the Rossiya TV channel noted, this is not some kind of mutant alien from outer space, but an ordinary birch boletus, not even wormy.

Lingzhi from China weight 7.5 kg

The found huge varnished tinder fungus, or, as it is called in China - (Ganoderma lucidum) - weighs 7.5 kg, and its diameter is 107 cm. They found a find in one of the provincial Chinese cities of Hezhou. This mushroom belongs to the genus Ganoderma, which has been used for over 2000 years in Chinese medicine. It is also called the "mushroom of immortality". Lingzhi is believed to boost immunity due to active compounds called polysaccharides, which can increase the activity of white blood cells. The impressive size and weight of the tinder fungus allow it to take one of the lines in the ranking of the largest mushrooms in the world.

Raincoat from Russia weight 12 kg

The largest mushroom in Russia is found by mushroom picker Vladislav Grabosinsky in the fall of 2011 in the Perm Territory. The diameter of the giant's hat was 1 meter and 72 centimeters, and the height was about half a meter. The weight of the find exceeded 12 kilograms. Biologists do not consider this find rare. Raincoats grew and large sizes reaching 20 kg in weight. Raincoats are eaten when they are still young. Since it was already too late to eat the giant, Vladislav took him to study at the Botany Department of Perm University. This edible miracle was listed in the Guinness Book of Records.

Mushroom from Italy weight 14 kg

In Italy, a kind of record was also recorded. A huge champignon, weighing about 14 kilograms, was found by Francesco Quito, a resident of the province of Baria. Despite the fact that the mushroom was found near the village, Francesco could hardly carry it on his shoulder, so he had to use a car. The mushroom was unspoiled and edible. I had to call the neighbors to eat such a giant.

Macromycetes from China weight 15 kg

In the Chinese province of Yunnan, a giant weighing 15 kilograms was discovered. The mushroom not only turned out to be huge, but also had unusual shape. Outwardly, it looked like a hundred small mushroom caps growing on one leg! In the diameter of the hat, it reached almost 1 meter. Scientists have not yet determined what kind of eccentric mushroom organism belongs to.

Macrocybe Titans from USA weight 20 kg

If we talk about traditional macromycetes in the usual sense, then the size leader can be called, which grows in the Caribbean countries and the USA. In one of the southern Mexican states in 2007, a specimen was found, the mass of which was 20 kg, and the height was about 70 cm. However, this find is not the only one. In 2005 in the United States, Mexican biologist and mushroom specialist Rene Andrade stumbled upon the same mushroom, which also grew on a coffee plantation, and its weight was as much as 28 kilograms. Such large sizes make this macromycete the object of close attention of the scientific community.

Macromycete from Canada weight 26 kg

Canadian macromycetes can also compete in size. A raincoat weighing 26 kilograms was discovered by a resident of Canada, Christian Terrien. A man discovered a mushroom while walking with his son through the forest. Canadians were amazed by their find and they admitted that they had never seen such large raincoats in their lives. The mushroom was taken home and had a photo shoot with him.

Fomitiporia ellipsoidea from China weight 500 kg

Another mushroom found and studied by Chinese mycologists grew 10.85 meters in height with a hat width of 82-88 cm. Scientists believe that this outstanding representative of the mushroom kingdom grew for at least 20 years. A giant tinder fungus with the world's largest fruiting body was found on Hainan Island in 2010, and has now been studied and classified. The brown monster turned out to be a perennial tree fungus - a representative of the species. One of the authors of the discovery, Yu Cheng Dai, from the Institute of Applied Ecology (IAE) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, says that he and his colleagues first found solid specimens of the same fungus in Fujian province back in 2008. But still, those macromycetes were not as large as the giant from Hainan. Interestingly, the authors of the study did not deliberately look for a record holder, but simply studied the diversity of tree mushrooms in the forests of the island. “None of us even imagined that a mushroom could grow so huge,” says Professor Dai. “We didn’t recognize him right away in the forest because he was too big.” Biologists estimated the volume of this fungus at 409-525 thousand cm3, and its weight at about 500 kilograms. Discovered by scientists, F. ellipsoidea grows underground, so it went unnoticed for a long time and was able to grow to such an impressive size.

Armillaria ostoyae from USA weight over 600 kg

The first line of the rating is occupied by the largest mushroom in the world, which mycologists discovered in the relict forests of the United States. It is considered the largest living being on the planet. This giant belongs to the Armillaria family, whose representatives have long been known for their size. Most of this living organism was underground, only small mushrooms could be clearly seen on the surface. The name of these macromycetes - or otherwise they are called honey mushrooms. One such honey agaric fits easily in the hand and is not too remarkable. But his mycelium, which is a single organism, occupied national park Oregon 880 Hectares! Its tentacles are located underground and entangle an area equal in size to 1665 football fields. The fungus has grown through the Oregon forests for about 2,500 years, destroying the root systems of trees in its path. That is why this macromycete is considered the largest on the planet.

You can relax in different ways. For some, this is reading a book or watching a long-awaited movie, for someone, a picnic with noise, barbecue. Somewhat apart are people who prefer interesting, if you're lucky, and profitable to spend time in nature. Hunting for animals and / or birds, fishing, picking mushrooms. The last type of active pastime in the forest always has its fans. It's enough for someone to love autumn forest, breathing fresh air, someone definitely needs to find the largest mushroom in the world to surprise everyone, hang their photo with a miracle of nature in their hands. , which both neophytes and experienced mushroom pickers can count on when going for a quiet hunt.

Giants of Russia

Speaking of picking mushrooms, of course, most people mean unconditionally edible mushrooms, which have a familiar shape, color and delicious smell, and not those of their varieties that frighten with their appearance alone, and they must be cooked with the care of a chef from Japan who conjures over puffer fish.

First of all, these are mushrooms, whose names are familiar from childhood, and the experience of collecting goes back centuries:

• Boletus. The most recent described case of finding a giant specimen, about which there was a short TV report on the Rossiya TV channel, occurred in 2011 in Omsk region. A mushroom picker with considerable experience, Alexei Korol, found a mushroom with a cap diameter of 36 cm. The height of the giant's legs is 28 cm, and the weight is 2.4 kg. I was especially surprised and pleased in the find that it turned out to be not wormy.

• A milk mushroom, which many mushroom pickers consider the only one worthy for pickling. Mentions about the methods of harvesting can be found even in the monastic chronicles. By the way, in the West it is considered inedible. The mushroom is very dense, so even with small sizes it is quite weighty. Unfortunately, there were no reliable facts about the record load. It is only known that the hat is 25 cm in diameter, almost a kilogram weight is not the limit for it.

• Ginger. The second most important mushroom for pickling, but has great taste and in fried. You can also salt it and bake it on a fire right in the forest. A hat of 20 cm, weight of about 0.5 kg is the limit for an edible specimen, which no one has ever treated to a mushroom picker.

• Butter dish. Those who have ever tasted the taste of butter fried with onions, potatoes, are happy to collect them in clean coniferous forests. This mushroom is not striking in size. Unfortunately, it is highly valued not only by people, but also by forest dwellers, from worms to squirrels. Therefore, you should not wait for record sizes, but send the butterflies into a basket.

• White mushroom or boletus is the dream of many, the king of Russian forests. The mushroom is very dense, with a rich (even dried) smell. There is information about the discovery in 1961 in a forest near Moscow of a porcini mushroom with a 60-centimeter hat, weighing about 11 kg, which is impressive. Today it is the largest White mushroom in the world, but nothing lasts forever, and a new record is waiting for its lucky owner.

Few facts:

• Mushrooms are living organisms, not lower plants, as previously thought. At the same time, they combine some features of animals and plants.
• There are more than 100 thousand different types, of which for lovers silent hunting are of interest to macromycetes.
• These are mushrooms with massive fruiting bodies, which are so nice to put in a basket - cap mushrooms. They also include raincoats, polypore mushrooms, which, as they say, are not for everybody. A separate species, a variety of mushrooms "macromycete", as they like to thoughtlessly sign a find on many photographs, does not exist.
• Of all the rest, for lovers of forest walks, only medicinal birch mushroom- chaga, which is easy to find; yeast, on which dough for pies was started on the road; kombucha, which gives a sour drink, perfectly quenches thirst after a quiet hunt.
• All hat mushrooms, which are of the greatest interest to the mushroom picker, are divided by scientists into two more groups: basidiomycetes and marsupials.
• For example, white, boletus, mushroom, oiler, honey agaric, camelina are basidial, and the famous truffle and mushrooms with unpleasant names: morel, line - are marsupial mushrooms.

Miracles on a global scale

News of foreign achievements in the search for record mushrooms is also interesting, although often causes mixed feelings. But first things first, immediately discarding the “information” with the explicit use of Photoshop about “macromycetes” found all over the world with multi-meter legs, hats, weighing hundreds of kilograms:

• Truffle. Very tasty, the most appreciated by gourmets, a mushroom weighing 7 kg was found in southern Italy. A real record.

• Lingzhi or varnished tinder fungus. A 7.5 kg specimen was found in China. Grows in Russia - in a warm climate Black Sea coast Caucasus. Given that this medicine traditional medicine, By appearance little different from birch chaga, with nutritional value equal to zero, it is unlikely that he should be included in the number of contenders for victory.

• Champignon. Found in Italy, a copy weighing 14 kg.

• Raincoats of huge sizes - from 0.5 to 1.72 (!) m in diameter, found from Russia, Great Britain to Canada. Since the food taste value this bag of spores is very conditional, and, according to the Russian "table of ranks", among edible mushrooms it is assigned to the 4th, last category (little known, rarely collected), it is hardly worth considering these giants as successful finds that shook the world.

If we agree with the Guinness Book of Records, then the first place was taken by the Americans, who accidentally discovered a giant mycelium that had lived quietly before that for 2500 years, slowly destroying a relict forest in Oregon on an area of ​​​​880 (!) Ha, having on the surface only small fruits a few centimeters in size.

Armed with the latest achievements of American propaganda, they awarded him the title of "the largest mushroom in the world" and now rest on their laurels, and the mass of sites trustingly copies the amazing, exciting story about this "macromycete". It seems that with the same success the largest mushroom can be considered what is located under Belovezhskaya Pushcha in Belarus, Siberian or Far Eastern taiga. Then the scale of the records will reach a new, unprecedented level in the United States.