Chinese scientists discover “D-rex

Scientists have discovered a giant new fungus in China that grows up to 20 inches tall and weighs nearly five pounds, making it the largest known of its kind. Dubbed “D-rex,” its evolutionary lineage appears to have emerged shortly after the dinosaurs went extinct, raising intriguing questions about how that ancient catastrophe may have shaped its evolution. Chinese scientists discover “D-rex,” a giant fungus with roots stretching back 65 million years.

The newly identified species, Dianjunus rex, produces upright reproductive structures that can reach 50 cm (20 inches) in height and weigh as much as 2.2 kg (4.9 pounds). These are the largest known fruiting bodies among fungi belonging to the phylum Ascomycota. "This remarkable species represents a new fungal family, Dianjunaceae, and provides a rare window into the evolution of extreme fungal body forms," said Dr Indunil C Senanayake, an associate professor at the Germplasm Bank of Wild Species of the Kunming Institute of Botany in China and corresponding author of the study, published in Frontiers in Fungal Biology.

"The discovery illustrates how much fungus biodiversity remains to be discovered in East Asian forests." A Giant Fungus Hidden in China’s Forests Researchers from the Kunming Institute of Botany encountered the unusual fungus while surveying several forest environments in Yunnan. Their fieldwork included temperate coniferous forests near Damaidi and Yipinglang, along with tropical rainforest near Nanbang. The team spotted unusually large, whitish reproductive structures, known as ‘stromata’, growing from the woody roots of Chinese cork oak trees.