Understanding rot: from present day ecology, to fossil fungi and ancient geology

Culinary Historians of Chicago

Understanding rot: from present day ecology, to fossil fungi and ancient geology True woody trees evolved approximately 360 million years ago, and since that time wood has become an important part of forests, influencing soil formation, carbon cycling and many aspects of our current economy. Fungi are the only organisms that have evolved the ability to break down woody material. The decay of wood usually happens in one of two ways: through white rot, which typically returns most of the carbon to the atmosphere, or through brown rot, which binds a significant amount of carbon in the soil for long periods of time. This talk will cover white rot and brown rot fungi, and all rot types in between. In addition, it will cover the range of fossil fungi that have been discovered, and will highlight how the evolution of decay fungi may have shaped the earth’s geological processes, from the Carboniferous period to the present day. Daniel Lindner has been a research mycologist at the US Forest Service’s Center for Forest Mycology Research since 2003. His research aims to understand how humans affect fungal communities, and how these changes can in turn affect larger ecosystem processes. Daniel’s research has focused on forest management techniques and their influenes on fungal communities and carbon sequestration, as well as the interactions between fungi (both pathogenic and beneficial) and wildlife. Daniel has studied the relationships between fungi and the federally endangered Red Cockaded Woodpecker, as well the interactions between insectivorous bats and the fungus Pseudogymnoascus destructans, which causes the devastating disease known as White-Nose Syndrome of bats. Daniel received his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Department of Plant Pathology in 2001. His Ph.D. research examined the effects of forest management on wood-inhabiting fungal communities in the upper Midwest. Following his Ph.D., Daniel lived in Uppsala, Sweden where he conducted post-doctoral work investigating DNA-based methods for identifying fungi associated with complex environmental substrates. Recorded on April 6, 2020 on Zoom www.IllinoisMyco.org