Jack-O-Lantern

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 * // Omphalotus Olearius //

If you are walking through the woods in the night and see a eerie green glow you probably are looking at the Omphalotus Olearius or the Jack-O-Lantern fungi. This bioluminescent fungus is found in areas of North America. What is bioluminescent? Bioluminescent means they are capable of creating their own light or “glows in the dark’. The Jack-O-Lantern fungi are easy to identify. This poisonous species grows in clusters on wood usually on tree trunks. It is a bright orange fungus with a white or pale yellow spore print. It is commonly found in the urban areas for example the Rocky Mountains. What actually glow are the gills on the stem. The Jack-O-Lantern fungus is eukaryotic meaning it has a nucleus. It is also mullticellular or “is made up of many cells”. How do they retain their nutrients? The Jack-O-Lantern fungi absorbs nutrients from other organisms around it.  At first many scientists thought this was a conspiracy or mythological. A scientist quoted “this is a fresh specimen “meaning a new species of an interesting fungus. Then the scientists saw its eerie green color glowing in the night.   Grace, Dylan, and Hunter  Pd. 5