This GIANT Fungus is Eating Oregon ALIVE! The World’s LARGEST Organism Will Blow Your Mind!

Welcome to Season 1, Episode 2 of “Random Knowledge You Should Know”.

Hello and welcome, today we dive into the bizarre Humongous Fungus, the world’s largest organism! This massive honey fungus (Armillaria ostoyae) in Oregon’s Malheur National Forest is nature’s creepiest giant.

World’s Heaviest Organism Outweighs Blue Whales

The Humongous Fungus weighs 7,500–35,000 tons, dwarfing 175 blue whales (200 tons each), making it the largest living organism in Oregon’s Malheur National Forest.

https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/humongous-fungus/

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/strange-but-true-largest-organism-is-fungus/

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/factcheck/2021/07/29/fact-check-fake-photos-humongous-fungus-circulate-online/5365299001/

Ancient Fungus Older Than Human Civilization*

Aged 2,400–8,650 years, this ancient honey fungus may predate civilizations, creeping at 0.7–3.3 feet yearly in Oregon’s forest ecosystem. *Civilization may be as old as 12,800 years or more - point of debate.

https://www.opb.org/news/article/oregon-humongous-fungus-sets-record-as-largest-single-living-organism-on-earth/

https://interstellar.news/science-and-technology/the-humongous-fungus-a-remarkable-natural-phenomenon-in-oregon/

Edible Autumn Mushrooms with Toxic Lookalikes
Honey-colored mushrooms sprout in fall, edible if cooked, but toxic lookalikes endanger foragers in Oregon’s Humongous Fungus habitat.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/humongous-fungus-oregon-malheur-national-forest/

https://interstellar.news/science-and-technology/the-humongous-fungus-a-remarkable-natural-phenomenon-in-oregon/

https://thinkbluemarble.com/humongous-fungus/

Giant Clonal Fungus Colony

Spanning 2,385 acres, this Humongous Fungus is one genetic clone, confirmed by DNA, dominating Oregon’s Malheur National Forest as a single organism.

https://www.earthdate.org/the-humongous-fungus-among-us

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/strange-but-true-largest-organism-is-fungus/

https://v-e-n-u-e.com/The-Humongous-Fungus

Rival Giant Fungi in Washington and Michigan

Armillaria colonies in Washington (1,500 acres) and Michigan (173 acres) are massive, but Oregon’s Humongous Fungus is the largest organism known.

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/strange-but-true-largest-organism-is-fungus/

https://bigthink.com/the-present/humongous-fungus/

Fire Suppression Fueled Fungus Growth

Since the 1930s, fire suppression preserved trees and debris, supercharging the Humongous Fungus’s spread in Oregon’s Malheur National Forest.

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