Basidiomycota

(noun)

a taxonomic division within the kingdom Fungi: 30,000 species of fungi that produce spores from a basidium

Related Terms

Examples of Basidiomycota in the following topics:

  • Basidiomycota: The Club Fungi

    • The basidiomycota are mushroom-producing fungi with developing, club-shaped fruiting bodies called basidia on the gills under its cap.
    • The fungi in the Phylum Basidiomycota are easily recognizable under a light microscope by their club-shaped fruiting bodies called basidia (singular, basidium), which are the swollen terminal cell of a hypha.
    • In addition, the basidiomycota includes smuts and rusts, which are important plant pathogens, and toadstools.
    • Most edible fungi belong to the Phylum Basidiomycota; however, some basidiomycetes produce deadly toxins.

  • Mutualistic Relationships with Fungi and Fungivores

    • The fungal partner can belong to the Ascomycota, Basidiomycota, or Zygomycota.
    • Lichens are not a single organism, but, rather, an example of a mutualism in which a fungus (usually a member of the Ascomycota or Basidiomycota phyla) lives in close contact with a photosynthetic organism (a eukaryotic alga or a prokaryotic cyanobacterium).
    • The association between species of Basidiomycota and scale insects is one example.