Lunar Fungi

Lunar Fungi (fungus lunari, also known as Moon Shrooms, Moonshrooms or Werewolf Shrooms) are genera of the fungus noctis family. The most notable feature or the Lunar Fungi is their caps' bio-luminescence when exposed to moonlight. Lunar Fungi are said to have a high nutritional value and most of them are edible.

Some prominent species

• lunari deliciosa - the "Spoon Shroom"
• lunari fortuna - the "Boon Shroom"
• lunari eremo - the "Dune Shroom"
• lunari junoni - the "June Shroom"
• lunari meridii - the "Noon Shroom"
• lunari prunae - the "Prune Shroom"
• lunari brevi - the "Soon Shroom"
• lunari bulimae - the "Swoon Shroom"
• lunari musicae - the "Tune Shroom"
• lunari simiae - the "Baboon Shroom"
• lunari pergitis - the "Goon Shroom"
• lunari sonitui - the "Boom Shroom"
• lunari aeriae - the "Baloon Shroom"
• lunari pictae - the "Cartoon Shroom"
• lunari phalaricae - the "Harpoon Shroom"
• lunari cornuali - the "Half-Moon Shroom"
• lunari sponsae - the "Bridoon Shroom"
• lunari vico - the "Commune Shroom"
• lunari occidenti - the "High-Noon Shroom"
• lunari immuni - the "Immune Shroom"
• lunari aestuario - the "Lagoon Shroom"

Etymology and History

Because of their moonlight bio-luminosity, many believe this as the origin of their name. But this isn't the only plausible explanation. The earliest records of this type of fungi are from ancient tribes that worshipped the sun and the moon. They used these shrooms as part of sacred moonlight rituals. They believed the Lunar Fungi to soak up the moonlight itself, which made them potent vessels of divine power. Therefore, they referred to it as "The Moonlight Vessel" or "The Moonlight Mushroom" in their ritual descriptions. It is unclear if they had a preferred type of Lunar Fungi or if they treated them all the same, since they all share their bio-luminescence. Also, since there is no evidence of them using the Lunar Fungi for anything else than the rituals and offering for their gods, so they wouldn't have to look out for the few inedible or toxic species of this genus.

Distribution

Lunar Fungi can be found almost any place lit by moonlight. Some species prefer a more humid environment, while others like it more dry. Most species are found in coniferous forests and they only grow in deciduous forests from late autumn to early spring. This is likely because of the foliage blocking the moonlight from the ground. Most of them can survive in low temperature without problems, but they wither in high temperatures. The Dune Shroom is the only species known to be found in areas with an average temperature of 25°C or more.

Ecology

Lunar Fungi are generally small sized fungi. Their known species range from 1cm to 12cm in height and the stems range from 0.2cm to 4.5cm in diameter. They are also mycorrhizal fungi. As such, they establish mutualistic relationships with the roots of trees and other plants that are at least ten times as big as them. They use these bonds to exchange minerals and amino acids. In controlled laboratory conditions could be observed that these bonds form a round shape and slowly turn into a crescent shape as the fungi ages. Because of their bonds, the fruit bodies of the fungi grow close to their host plants or close to their roots. When the host plant moves, the Lunar Fungi mostly just moves along, adapting to the new environment, if possible. Although there is some evidence that these fungi could have a predisposition for photosynthesis, it is a way too weak for them to support themselves, so they have to rely on their host plant to survive.

Bio-Luminescence

When exposed to moonlight, Lunar Fungi begins to glow in faint colors, depending on the species and the environment. This glow makes them easy to spot at night, while they can sometimes be hard to find during the day. It is not entirely clear what makes them glow like that, but biologists suspect it to have to do something with a very weak form of photosynthesis. If this was proven, it would be a scientific breakthrough, since fungi are commonly known as being unable to do photosynthesis. There were a lot of experiments with other sources of light, such as sunlight, fire and magical forms of light, but none proved to bring the same glowing response from the fungi as real moonlight. Even experiments with light of the same wavelength as moonlight or with spells that intimidate moonlight were unsuccessful. Nobody knows why this is the case, but it could be a sign that there is more to moonlight than science can explain.

Scientific Name

fungus lunari