libutron: Glowing mushrooms – Mycena lux-coeli Like fireflies,…
Glowing mushrooms – Mycena lux-coeli
Like fireflies, luminescent squid, and other so-called bioluminescent organisms, glow-in-the-dark mushrooms contain an enzyme known as luciferin. When luciferin is oxidized (i.e. comes in contact with oxygen), it emits energy in the form of light, which causes organisms containing it to glow.
Numerous species of Mycena form luminescent mycelium and/or fruiting bodies. No fewer than 26 species of Mycena have been reported as bioluminescent. This one in the picture is Mycena lux-coeli, native to Japan where it is found almost solely on large shi-no-ki trees (Castanopsis sieboldii, or chinkapins in English), one of the dominant climax species in the native forests of the Kii Peninsula in Japan.
Photo credit: ©Masahisa Uemura | Locality: Nachikatsuura, Higashimuro District, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan (2013)
Reposted from http://lies.tumblr.com/post/100751458673.
