#mycorrhizal

Fungal networks act as the planet's underground circulatory system, but 90% of their biodiversity hotspots sit outside protected areas. Using 16,000+ soil cores and machine learning, SPUN has mapped Earth's mycorrhizal biomass to help prioritize below-ground conservation. Learn more 👉️ https://mongabay.cc/ffqDoN#mycorrhizal

This is really beautiful, interesting and important at the same time. SPUN: *A hidden infrastructure* ➡️ Underground networks "Beneath our feet lie networks of invisible ecosystem engineers: arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi. These fungi form trading relationships with more than 70% of plant species, building networks of tubular cells called hyphae that extend the surface area of root systems up to a hundred-fold. Collectively, these networks comprise one of Earth's circulatory systems." ➡️ 📖 https://a-hidden-infrastructure.spun.earth/story/a-hidden-infrastructure 🌐 https://a-hidden-infrastructure.spun.earth/story/mycorrhizal-infrastructure-map#biology #mycorrhizal #mycorrhizalFungi #fungi #SPUN #VrijeUniversiteitAmsterdam #VUamsterdam #science #cartography

💁🏻‍♀️ TIL: 🍄🌍 Scientists mapped arbuscular #mycorrhizal #fungi – the #underground fungal threads that connect #plant roots. Analyzing over 16,000 #soil cores from 322 studies, they found the network stretches 110 quadrillion(!) km in the topsoil, long enough to reach the #Sun nearly a billion times. #Grasslands and #prairies hold the densest networks, while #farming reduces fungal density by nearly half. 👉 https://www.sciencealert.com/hidden-web-of-fungus-inside-earth-could-reach-the-sun-a-billion-times #science #ecology #plants #carbon #map #nature #biology #climate #microscopy #research #study