Fungus
For
the botanically minded visitor to Cairns the northern Wet Tropics region
of Australia is a veritable paradise. The mixture of high humidity
and temperature, as well as an abundance of rain, is a successful recipe
for the profusion and survival of a great variety of wonderful and unusual
plants.
Perhaps some of
the most extraordinary and interesting plants that can be seen in the
Cairns area are the fungi. These plants are most prevalent in
amongst the decaying vegetation on the floor of the tropical forest,
particularly when the sun reappears and the humidity rises in the
aftermath of a good shower of rain. The fungi serve the purpose of
decomposing and recycling the dead organic material, producing nutrients
that enrich soil that otherwise would not support the abundance of flora
that it does.
The Collins
English Dictionary describes Fungus as "...any plant of the division
Fungi, lacking chlorophyll, leaves, true stems, and roots, reproducing
by spores, and living as a saprophyte [living and receiving nourishment
from dead organic matter] or parasite [living and receiving nourishment
from a live host]. The group includes moulds, mildews, rusts, yeasts
and mushrooms."
Although the
fungi are included in the "Flora" section of Cairns-on-a-CD, it should be
noted that fungi do not really belong to the plant kingdom,
actually
being part of
an entirely
separate
realm
from animals and plants and not specifically related to either.
In an article on the Department of Environment
and Heritage website, we read the following...
(Article truncated at this point.)
Cairns-on-a-CD includes a photo gallery of over sixty high resolution
pictures of beautiful
and unusual fungi common to the tropical rainforests of Cairns.
This condensed sample from the article
on Fungus is from the "Flora" section of
Cairns-on-a-CD. The "Flora" section
includes approximately 15 such articles.
The unabridged article contains more than 10 pages of
photographs and interesting information.
To
enjoy the full article
Buy your copy of "Cairns-on-a-CD - The
Digital Postcard"
Over 1200 Photographs and 160 Articles of Cairns
and District
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