Study to unravel the magic of mushrooms

KOCHI:  How much do we actually know about mushrooms? Apart from the fact that they are fruiting bodies of fungi and that they make for excellent dishes, little is known about their ecological importance. In an effort to create awareness on the importance of mushrooms to the ecosystem, and to initiate conservation measures, the Kerala State Biodiversity Board (KSBB) is set to launch a series of initiatives in the state.  

As part of the efforts, the KSBB has launched a first-of-its-kind course, ‘Mushroom identification and need for their conservation in natural habitats’. The authorities are also planning to include mushrooms in the biodiversity register managed by Biodiversity Management Committees under local bodies across the state. 

The objective is to inspire the students to get closer to nature, observe the rich diversity among fungi and involve in participatory science and research meant for fungal conservation in natural habitats. Mushrooms, say experts, are remarkable life forms, yet extremely neglected. 

“Fungi play a vital role in our ecosystem and people are unaware of it. Mushrooms help the tree extract minerals and water from the soil and the trees also supplement their growth. They are the dominant decomposers of the complex components of plant debris,” says Kerala State Biodiversity Board principal scientific officer Yamuna S.  

Exploitation of land and forests, climate change, pollution and overharvesting of mushrooms have endangered them and the scientific community has called for legal policies to aid in the conservation of mushrooms globally. 

“Our aim is to sensitise the younger generation and enable them to identify diverse species of mushrooms. We want to record the data on various species of mushrooms available in Kerala. We will be including students from every district to be part of the course and they will be engaged in the local level conservation and awareness building activities,” said Yamuna. 

As part of the course, the KSSB is planning to build knowledge among the participants to identify edible and non-edible mushrooms seen in Kerala. “Identifying edible and non-edible mushrooms is an intricate process which requires immense experience. Experts from India and abroad would be taking classes for those taking the course. Also, we want to map the ecosystem of mushrooms and revisit the locations after a period to check its status and launch further research,” said Yamuna. For more details, visit https://www.keralabiodiversity.org/index.php/ksbb-certificate-courses