The hat thrower fungus is reportedly the fastest living thing on the planet.
Stalker doesn’t know how they have tested this – have they rigged up a race between a cheetah and a mushroom?
Pilobolus crystallinus var. crystallinus, commonly known as the "Dung Cannon" or "Hat Thrower", is a species of fungus belonging to the Mucorales order.
It is unique in that it adheres its spores to vegetation, so as to be eaten by grazing animals. It then passes through the animals' digestive systems and grows in their faeces.
Although these fungi only grow to be 2–4 cm (0.8–1.6 in) tall, they can shoot their sporangium, containing their spores, up to 2 m (6.6 ft) away. Due to an increase of pressure in the vesicle, the sporangium can accelerate 0–45 mph in the first millimetre of its flight, which corresponds to an acceleration of an incredible 20000 g. Using a mucus-like substance found in the vesicle of the fungus, the sporangium can adhere itself onto whatever it lands on, thus completing its life cycle.
There you have it folk’s - another mushroom related world record, of sorts.
We all know that a mushroom is the largest organism known to exist on planet Earth, now we know that a wee fiddly one is the fastest thing on the planet.