TO GO WITH AFP STORY "Fungi finding: mushroom hunters seek new species and recognition"
Mycology student Jina Patton uses a microscope to examine the morphology of a tiny mushroom foundduring a biodiversity survey in Port Angeles, Washington, on October 17, 2024. Amateur mycologists and mushroom experts alike are stepping up efforts to identify and name the approximately 94 percent of fungi that have yet to be identified out the 2.5 million species of fungi that are thought to exist on earth. So far less than six percent of mushrooms have been classified. The recognition of the importance of fungi in the earth’s health and ecology has grown, so much so that the role of mushrooms is set to come up for discussion at the UN Convention on Biological Diversity COP16 meeting in Colombia, which kicks off on October 21, 2024. (Photo by Robyn Beck / AFP)